State of Collapse: An anti-authoritarian journal

State of Collapse is an editorial site offering anarchist views on current events concerning political abuse of criminal justice systems, human rights atrocities, and the encroachment of the total surveillance society.

In the German post-war period, it was long claimed that only the Gestapo (Nazi secret police) were involved in the mass murder and the extermination policies of the Nazis. An exhibition, Order and Annihilation – The Police and the Nazi Regime at the German Historical Museum in Berlin, thoroughly dispenses with this assertion. All sections of the police, including regular uniformed and criminal detection forces, were willing tools of the Nazis.

However, what makes the exhibition particularly impressive is something else: It reveals the continuity of the role of the police, not only from the imperial era to the Hitler dictatorship, but also into the period since 1945. Hardly any police officers were brought before the courts after the war to account for their crimes. The few who were accused appealed to their obligation to obey orders, defended themselves with lies, and were only found guilty of “complicity in murder” in the rare event of an actual conviction. Many Nazi police simply continued their careers in the force, a considerable number of them attaining leadership positions.

The exhibition project was initiated by the former Potsdam chief of police, Detlef Graf von Schwerin, the son of a resistance fighter. It was taken up and funded by the standing committee of the state interior ministers, and prepared by the German Police Academy in Münster in cooperation with a team of historians. Klaus Neidhardt, president of the German Police Academy, declared in his opening welcome to the exhibition that trainee police officers should be confronted with the past in order to “be aware of abuse of power”. He said the police “in a democratic constitutional state” were “the direct opposite of those under the Nazi regime”, and were duty-bound to protect the “liberties and civil rights, the fundamental rights of the individual”.

The hard facts recorded in the exhibition tell a different story. The same ideas as Klaus Neidhardt’s were propagated by Carl Severing, the social democratic interior minister who replaced Defence Minister Gustav Noske — also a Social Democrat — in the Weimar Republic in 1920. But Severing’s reforms failed to alter the fact that the membership of the police force was almost completely absorbed into the fascist state apparatus, when Hitler took power in 1933.

The Social Democratic Party and “The Police — Your friend and helper”

The first two sections of the exhibition show how Noske integrated paramilitary Freikorps units and parts of the Imperial Army along with its equipment into the police force after the First World War, and used it to violently crush the uprisings of the revolutionary workers. When the reactionary forces subsequently felt themselves strengthened and attempted a coup d’état under the leadership of Generals Kapp and Littwitz Lüttwitz in March 1920, most of the police units commanded by Noske sympathized with the putschists. It was only due to a general strike and a counterattack from the Red Ruhr Army that it was possible for them to be beaten back.

The police were also used for the bloody repression of labour unrest during Carl Severing’s leadership, for example, in Saxony 1921 and Hamburg in 1923. Only when the revolutionary wave subsided after the failed October uprising of 1923 and the economy stabilized, did Severing begin to restructure and demilitarize the police force by recruiting staff that had not previously served in the army or the Freikorps. He assigned new duties — in particular, traffic control — to the police, transformed the police service into a profession requiring qualifications, and also arranged for women to be recruited.

All of this amounted to an image campaign waged by the SPD in an attempt to portray the police as guarantor of a democratic constitution. Their symbol became the stop sign of the traffic cop; their slogan: “The Police — Your friend and helper”. In the autumn of 1926, a large-scale police exhibition was held at the Berlin Exhibition Grounds, attracting half a million visitors with sports and musical events.

Supplementing some pictures and a ticket to this major event, the 1926 catalogue preface — composed by Albert Grzesinski, Carl Severing’s successor and also a Social Democrat — is projected onto a wall: “This police exhibition aims to demonstrate that the police force in the modern nation state is and wants to be a people’s police service; and that it consciously promotes its organization, its expansion and its training programme under the motto: Friend, helper and comrade of the population”.

By running such campaigns, the SPD was trying to blind the population as to what was really going on. Just as before, there were many Freikorps members in the ranks of the police, and the new recruits came mainly from the middle classes, who were later to add their support to the Nazi Party. Distrust of the police remained very much alive in the working class following its bloody experiences from 1918 to 1923.

In addition, the SPD feared that revolutionary riots could again flare up and the Communist Party, founded in 1919, might grow stronger. Therefore, a modern armoured counter-insurgency vehicle stood at the entrance to the 1926 police exhibition, next to the traffic policeman’s stop sign and the friendly invitation, “Come closer”. Still worn by a number of officers as a status symbol, the long sword from the imperial era was replaced by a shorter weapon. In 1924, the truncheon was introduced, but the Nazis later scrapped it. At the same time, however, the police were equipped with mobile water cannons and combat vehicles, as well as more efficient technology for forensic investigation and data collection, which the Nazis were later able to exploit.

Established in Munich prior to 1933, a centre for the registration of “gypsies” was later used by the Nazis to compile their deportation lists. The exhibition also features an index card cabinet, which was found in the basement of the police headquarters in Cologne after the war. Visitors can take in their hands some of the 3,458 index cards discovered there. Names are at last given to the countless dead, who were arrested — with the help of local police authorities — and sent to concentration camps or summarily executed as so-called enemies of the people. They were mainly male and female workers, who were registered with details relating to occupation, height, hair and eye colour, age, previous membership in workers’ parties, and of course race, as well as the alleged offence and date of death. In the case of Roma or Sinti people, the word “Gypsy” is stamped in big red letters on the index cards.

In the final stage of the Weimar Republic, it was ultimately the Social Democrats, who — despite the democratic credentials they had reassigned to the police — once again employed the now well-equipped police units against workers’ demonstrations. Such was the case in the “Bloody May” of 1929, when the Berlin SPD chief of police, Karl Frederick Zörgiebel, ordered his officers to shoot down protesters at the May rallies in working class neighbourhoods, killing almost 40 people. Albert Grzesinski, the Prussian interior minister at the time, gave Zörgiebel his full support. The increasingly authoritarian and police state rule of General von Papen, who had discharged the last social-democratic coalition government in Prussia (which included Grzesinski) in 1932, based its power on this preliminary work of the Social Democrats.

While the SPD persisted in appealing to the spirit of the Weimar constitution to the end, more and more police officers and other sections of the state apparatus placed their hopes in the Nazi Party, which promised to clamp down on the working class.

Zörgiebel also had a postwar career with the police. Having spent four months in a concentration camp during the Nazi period and subsequently been placed under surveillance by the Gestapo in his hometown of Mainz, he helped to rebuild the police force after 1945. He became chairman of the SPD in Mainz, and headed the police force in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate from 1947 until he retired in 1949.

When the Nazis came to power, it finally became apparent that the “nice cop”, the “friend and helper”, was primarily interested in participating in raids and mass arrests rather than controlling traffic. A radio report about a raid in Berlin’s Scheunen district on April 5, 1933 — a few days after the Nazi seizure of power — can be heard in excellent audio quality at the exhibition. It is unsettling to experience how familiar this old recording sounds to modern ears.

The reporter talks to a police officer involved in the raid, and goes with him to a truck, in which 15 arrested people are sitting. Acting as something of a mouthpiece for the police, he asks an elderly Jewish resident about why he was arrested: “I didn’t have my identity card with me”. The exchange develops as follows. The reporter says in an aggressive tone, “Why not?” – I had it renewed last Friday. “So you got a stamp!” – They only gave me a waiting-number. – “Where is it?” – At home, but I live just over there. – “Where do you come from?” – I’ve lived in this street for 36 years. – “Where were you born?” – In Krakow. – “Aha, so you’re a foreigner! What are you doing here?” – I have a furniture store, etc.

The legend of the clean police force

The main part of the exhibition, Order and Annihilation, shows a plethora of documents and photographs concerning the countless crimes of the police between 1933 and 1945 — from conducting raids, arrests and deportations to mass shootings and death squads, both on the so-called home front and behind the front in the occupied areas of eastern and western Europe.

Some of this was already known, but the extent to which the police actually took part in massacres during the war is presented here in detail for the first time. Their brutality went too far even for some of the army leaders, as is shown in a note made in 1940 by the commander-in-chief of the southern border region, General Wilhelm Ulex: “The recent increase in acts of violence on the part of police units is indicative of an utterly incomprehensible lack of human and moral sensibility, such that one can only speak of downright bestiality”.

Even more importantly, and perhaps the greatest merit of the exhibition, is the scrupulous exposition of the cover-up of these crimes after the war. Lieutenant General Adolf von Bomhardt, the second most important officer in the regular police force after the chief of police and head of the Berlin central power, Kurt Daluege, indicated the way things were to develop, when he appeared at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal in 1946. He claimed that only the Gestapo (Nazi secret police) and the SS (Hitler’s elite force) could be held responsible for the crimes. Police detectives and the security police — known as the regular police after 1936 — were said to have merely aided in administrative tasks related to the deportations, and were only “following orders” in cases involving policemen shooting people.

In the following decades, this was to be the guiding principle for the judiciary and the basic defence made by all public officials facing prosecution. On April 10, 1951, the national parliament also made a whitewash of countless Nazi crimes committed by the police and other authorities: the law regulating the legal status of persons covered by Article 131 of the constitution. This so-called “131 law” stipulated that all former civil servants who were not classified as major offenders or otherwise incriminated during the de-nazification procedures were allowed to continue their careers in the civil service. All the parliamentary parties, including the Communist Party, supported this legislation.

The law provided the legitimacy for a smooth transformation of the Nazi police into the police force of the West German democracy. Just how smoothly this was achieved is reflected in an exhibition showcase containing the service uniform of the Bavarian policeman, Kaspar Ebner, who worked in the Bavarian police force from the late imperial period to the 1950s. When he resumed his employment with the police in Ansbach at the end of the war, he still wore the same uniform he had received as a master of the gendarmerie in Ingolstadt in 1936 — as is clearly evidenced from the large-format photographs on a nearby board. Only certain badges and insignia were removed.

The murderers are still among us

Only a few members of the police battalions that committed massacres in the occupied territories were ever indicted. An exception to this was the 1967 Wuppertal trial of members of the Cologne police Battalion 309. On June 27, 1941, the battalion was operating in the eastern Polish city of Bialystok, where it carried out brutal raids in Jewish neighbourhoods, eventually shutting at least 800 Jews in the great synagogue, setting it on fire and leaving the people to be burned alive. Some inside tried to escape by climbing up to the windows. “But they had no chance because they were immediately shot down”, testified Karl S. from Saalhausen in a hearing in September 1960. Three of the twelve defendants were eventually sentenced to a term in prison in 1968. However, the Federal Court later repealed the sentence owing to a procedural error.

Only a few of the police who were able to continue their careers after the war can be mentioned here.

• Adolf von Bomhard, born 1891 in Augsburg, member of the Freikorps after the First World War, head of command quarters in the main department of the regular police force from 1936, commander of the regular police force in Kiev in 1942. After the war, he was the mayor of Prien on Chiemsee from 1960 to 1966, and died as an honorary citizen of Prien in 1976 without ever having been brought to court.

• Georg Heuser, head of the Gestapo in Minsk, where he was deeply involved in the murder of the Jewish population, returned to the civil service in 1954 due to the 131 law provision, and was head of the criminal investigation department of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate until 1958. In the course of the investigation of some of his staff in Minsk, he came to the attention of the judiciary in 1959, and became one of the few ever to be convicted in 1963: but only for “complicity in (the) murder” of 11,000 people. He served only 6 of his 15-year prison sentence.

• Reacting to a similar East-West German campaign, the West German judiciary launched an investigation in 1958 into the former lieutenant general of the Waffen SS and police force, Heinz Reinefarth, on account of crimes committed during the suppression of the Warsaw uprising in 1944. But procedures were suspended after a few weeks. At the time, Reinefarth had just been elected mayor of Westerland on Sylt. The investigation was not resumed until 1961. Units of the “Reinefarth combat group” had killed more than 15,000 civilians in Warsaw in the first days of August 1944 alone. On display in the exhibition is the transcript of a telephone conversation between Heinz Reinefarth and his commander, Nicholas von Vormann, on August 5, 1944. It reads: “What should I do with the civilians? I have more prisoners than I have ammunition”. Reinefarth was mayor on the island of Sylt until 1964.

• Bernd Wehner, former head of the homicide department in the Third Reich’s criminal investigation office, and senior director of the Dusseldorf police from 1954. In 1949, he became well known from a 30-part series in Spiegel magazine, where he received a platform to argue that the Nazi regime’s criminal detection department was a non-political organization. He subsequently helped numerous former Nazi colleagues to attain new posts in the West German police force. Historian Andreas Mix writes in his catalogue essay for the exhibition that the senior level of the federal criminal detection agency comprised 47 civil servants in 1959, and only two of these were innocent of any Nazi crime.

Likewise, few criminal prosecutions were conducted against former Nazi officers in the former Stalinist German Democratic Republic (GDR), although police personnel were replaced there after 1945. Following an extradition request from the West German investigative authorities, Josef Blösche was brought into custody. Known in Warsaw as the “horror of the ghettos”, Blösche was nevertheless able to settle in the GDR unmolested under his true name after the war. He was finally arrested in 1967, sentenced for crimes against humanity by the GDR judiciary in 1969, and executed three months later.

The Order and Annihilation exhibition, which was extended due to the great public interest it aroused, is well worth seeing and disturbingly topical. The call for the strong state is again growing loud in the midst of today’s catastrophic economic crisis and mounting social tensions. With the words of representatives of the Weimar SPD about community friendly policing still ringing in his ears, the visitor leaves the exhibition involuntarily thinking of how the social democratic Berlin interior minister recently attempted to install Udo Hansen as the new chief of police, and was only temporarily stopped owing to a procedural error. Hansen, the former federal border guard and notorious hard liner in matters concerning refugees, would presumably respond to labour unrest in much the same way as did Karl Friedrich Zörgiebel in 1929.

The exhibition will run until August 28, 2011 at the Pei building of the German Historical Museum.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

myFOXdetroit.com - It's already extremely hard for rape victims to come to court and testify. This alleged rape victim says the only reason she came back was to make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else.

This woman found the courage to come back to court and testify against one of the men who she says beat her with everything from a chair, to a two-by-four and raped her repeatedly before she found a way to escape from this Strasberg Street in Detroit.

That nightmare only continued at a Wednesday hearing , when she claims defense attorney Gabi Silver kept badgering her on the stand insinuating that she brought this attack on herself, causing this victim to snap in court.

"I said just get to the point bitch, it slipped out, it was inappropriate... all the bottled anger" says the alleged victim.

Without a warning, she says 36th District Judge Vanessa Bradley held her in contempt and ordered her to spend three days in jail.

After our story aired Wednesday, exposing what happened - the judge seemed to have a change of heart and released her a day early.

But to make matters even worse, she says her time in a holding cell was spent right next door to her alleged attacker who she says threatened her life, claiming the suspect who is still on the loose will come back and kill her. An investigation into this matter is underway.

In the end, the judge bound suspect Curtis King over for trial. The alleged victim says she's one step closer to justice, but she hopes no other rape victim will have to go through what she did to get it.

Monday, July 4, 2011

This article makes it abundantly clear that Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair has passed his “best before date.” The litany of shortcomings that have occurred on his watch continues to grow. The culture of abusing people has grown unfettered under his command. A CEO who continually comes up short on major key performance indicators would be quickly shown the door for cause. As the head of the Toronto police force he must stop the obfuscation and accept responsibility for the actions of the members of the force. He should be given the chance to immediately resign or be terminated for cause. The tipping point has been reached.

Glen N. Tolhurst, Guelph

On Wednesday I read two articles in the Star about the Toronto police force and the things they do to citizens and get away with. Two officers beat up a man near 51 Division causing great bodily harm and the judge sentenced them to one year of house arrest, meanwhile the man they beat up went through hell. Another officer got off for threatening two handcuffed suspects with his Taser because of his diabetes. Stop putting police on a pedestal; they are not heroes, just people, and should be subject to the laws of the land.

Robert Mobbs, Blue Mountain

The judge who sentenced two 51 Division officers for the brutal beating of an innocent man decided not to send them to jail because “Jail is a particularly dangerous place for police officers.” Few would doubt this fact. To solve this vexing problem, I would like to suggest that one of the new jails Stephen Harper is planning on building be reserved for police officers. Just counting those who should be tried for the illegal beatings and abuses of peaceful G20 protesters last year, the new jail should be full in no time.

The Ladies Anarchist Solidarity Society is forming an anti-policing contingent at Toronto’s Pride Parade while the Toronto Police continues to march at this year’s event, the 30th anniversary of the Toronto bathhouse raids. Taking part in a parade that grew out of protest of police conduct is seen as a form of community dialogue by police who have increased their presence since Bill Blair became the first police chief to march in 2005.

Some members of Toronto’s queer community object to TPS’ presence and see it as another form of pinkwashing in addition to the ongoing corporatization of Pride. Ashleigh Ingle believes that “we should not see the presence of our violent oppressors at our celebratory protest as a victory... we should not want their acceptance.”

Problems with the police faced by the queer and trans communities have been many, from the criminalization of consensual sexual acts to systemic harassment and brutality.

The Ladies Anarchist Solidarity Society (LASS) has called for an anti-policing contingent at this year’s parade “to be vocal for the members in our community who can't because they are continually targeted by police” and to “remember the roots of Pride”. They see it as important to not forget past struggles of the queer and trans community against the police and not condone its continuation today by uncritically accepting or encouraging police participation.

A Pride Toronto organizer who declined to be named expressed conflicted frustration while justifying police presence, “On one hand, we don’t want to put our volunteers in danger -- if anything were to happen. On the other, how do you have police presence when large portions of your community have been marginalized or brutalized?”

Resistance by members of the queer and trans communities hasn’t just occurred in the distant past at events like Stonewall and local riots in response to police raids and brutality. Last year in response to the treatment of queer and trans detainees at the G20, community members stormed the 519 to interrupt a speech by Bill Blair. An OPP recruitment event targeting the queer community was also shut down this past fall by the Queer Resistance Network who advocated “finding our own solutions to our own problems without the state.”

WASHINGTON — In the near future the noise you hear in your outside trash container might not be that pesky raccoon or the neighbor’s dog, but the FBI, looking for evidence to link you to some criminal or terrorist activity. That would be particularly true if you have had any contact knowingly or unknowingly, socially or otherwise with someone the bureau finds suspicious. If past experience is any guide, that could be nearly anyone.

According to recent news reports, officials of the national police force are preparing for another assault on our civil liberties. They are planning to give their agents more leeway to intrude into the lives of those they decide need further looking into by amending the domestic operations manual that sets out guidelines for conducting investigations. They would have enhanced ability to search not only household trash but also databases and could assign surveillance teams to scrutinize every aspect of American lives — shades of J. Edgar Hoover and his infamous Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO).

At the risk of overstating the case, that’s just plain scary.

Link that with reports of a mysterious FBI investigation into the activities of peace advocates and politically active labor organizers, and the past is not only prologue, it never went away. The Washington Post reported that the probe involving raids on seven homes and the issuance of subpoenas for 23 people last fall has triggered a major protest at the Justice Department. The investigation apparently is examining possible material support for Colombian and Palestinian groups designated as terrorists, the newspaper said.

There is no question that the bureau’s efforts to refocus its mission to counterterrorism have been largely successful. So much so that President Barack Obama has called off his search for a new FBI director and plans to seek a two-year extension of Robert Mueller’s 10-year term, which expires in September, despite the fact that the bureau’s surveillance tactics of advocacy groups and mosques have been severely criticized. An inspector general’s report four years ago said that the FBI had frequently misused so called national security letters that permit agents to obtain phone and other records without first receiving court permission.

Why the FBI would need an expansion of warrantless authority is unclear. There is enough existing machinery that allows agents and their supervisors to obtain expedited court permission for searches, especially in intelligence and national security cases where a special panel has been set up for that purpose.

During the Nixon administration when anti-Vietnam protest was at its height, a proposal by a minor White House functionary just out of college that would have suspended many of our civil liberties almost came to fruition. The plan was shelved only for the lack of a single signature. In one of that tumultuous period’s more ironic incidents, Hoover refused to sign off, relegating this dangerous undemocratic plan to a footnote in history.

Perhaps the same fate should be given this latest proposal.Talk back at thomassondan@aol.com.

Friday, June 24, 2011

About 30 greater Long Beach-area activists as well as residents who allege they have beenvictimized by Long Beach Police Department officers gathered outside the 43rd annual Police Awards at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center Wednesday, June 22, to challenge the department and raise awareness about what they described as an unacceptably high rate of officer-involved shootings in Long Beach.

Ian Thompson, an organizer with the ANSWER Coalition in Los Angeles, said the grassroots organization has launched a Campaign to Stop Police Violence, and the campaign is targeting the city of Long Beach based on what he described as a pattern of excessive use of force by LBPD officers.

"It's not just two or three shootings," he said, noting that there has also been a "series of tazings" in the recent past. "There's a pattern. ... The police department is out of control — it's like the wild, wild West."

As Long Beach police officers injured in the line of duty were honored with LBPD Purple Heart Awards and other officers recognized for distinguished service inside the Carpenter Center, the protestors marched in a corralled "Free Speech Zone" set up along the far side of the front of the center. They hoisted signs emblazoned with messages such as "Jail All Killer Cops" and "Medal of Dishonor."

Other signs called for justice for Douglas Zerby, (click here and here for previous coverage of the Zerby incident) who was killed by police after they mistook the garden hose nozzle he was holding for a gun, and for John Cabrera, whose fiance said Wednesday was unarmed when he was shot by LBPD officers responding to a domestic violence call.

The LBPD has stated that the officers fired in self-defense after Cabrera threatened to kill them and appeared to be reaching for a weapon. The couple earlier this week announced plans to file a civil rights suit against the city and the department.

Wednesday's protest was peaceful. Roughly a couple hundred feet away near the entrance of the center, police officers paid little attention to the demonstrators.

Sgt. Rico Fernandez provided the following official statement from the LBPD regarding the protest:

The Long Beach Police Department recognizes and respects every person’s right to freedom of speech. We feel it’s unfortunate, however, that this group of people has gathered on this date and at this particular event to express their displeasure with the police department in this manner.

It is an honor for the Long Beach Police Department to recognize police department employees, sworn and civilian, for their outstanding service to the community on a yearly basis, as well as honor those members of the community who have gone above and beyond to help another human being in need. Regrettably, there are some who do not share our appreciation for this event and have attended this event with different intentions.

Thompson said that demonstrating outside of the awards ceremony was aimed at "challeng[ing] the police in their moment of glory."

That "moment of glory," he contended, is undeserved considering the department's high rate of officer-involved shootings.

"Long Beach has more police shootings per capita than New York City," Thompson said.

The Long Beach Post looked into this claim, and it checks out. A December 2010 story on CrimeReport.org cites an Albuquerque newspaper that reported in October 2010 that the city of Long Beach was at that time averaging 1.07 officer-involved shootings per 100,000 residents for the year 2010. That's more than double what New York City was averaging at that time for the year 2010: .38 per 100,000 residents.

By year's end in 2010, the number of officer-involved shootings in Long Beach had climbed to nine. This, however, represents a significant drop from the previous year; officers discharged their weapons 17 times in 2009, according to statistics cited in a story about officer involved shootings published at Alibi.com. In 2008, the LBPD recorded 14 officer-involved shootings, while in both 2006 and 2007, nine such shootings were recorded. In 2005, there were 14.

These were the five words Sean Salvati cheekily uttered to two RCMP officers on June 23, 2010, three days before the G20 summit. And with that one sentence, what had been a fun evening of friends and Blue Jays baseball quickly became a hellish 11-hour ordeal in which Salvati claims he was arrested, strip-searched, beaten, denied access to a lawyer and left naked in a cell for nearly an hour.

Scenes of Salvati’s ordeal were captured by police security cameras at a downtown police station and his lawyers have obtained several hours of footage through Freedom of Information requests.

In one video, Salvati is shown being led from an interrogation room by three officers and escorted naked past a female officer.

In the last few decades, the population of our National Prisons has nearly tripled. This phenomenon can be attributed to many factors ranging from the increasing economic insecurity to the War on Drugs. Statistics tell us that 1 in 18 American men are now incarcerated or being monitored. Although this number could be reasonably justified as a reflection of our social morality breakdown, America still leads the world in per capita imprisonment and the privatization of the our corrections system calls into question the motives behind tougher sentencing and the ever increasing police state in this country.

Since 1980, the increase of population in prisons or under surveillance by the judicial system has increased to over 7 million persons. This increase is said to be attributable to the following factors:

1. Increased federalization of crime - The federal government has expanded its control into areas that have historically fallen under state jurisdiction.

2. Mandatory sentencing policy - Mandatory minimum sentencing policies adopted by Congress beginning in 1984 have contributed substantially to the number of drug offenders in federal prison, both by removing discretion from sentencing judges and increasing the length of sentence for many offenders.

3. Federal sentencing guidelines - An examination of sentencing changes in the first years of the guidelines' implementation found that the proportion of offenders sentenced to prison rose from 52% in pre-guideline cases in 1986 to 74% in guideline cases by 1990.

What is interesting is how the population increase per year has leveled off to"only" a 51% increase annually. Some will use this statistic to congratulate the growing police state and mandatory sentencing structure but the real reason is a profound lack of new prisons to house the inmates. Couple this with the recent California Supreme Court Case ruling on prison overcrowding and the need for more prisons and their associative costs becomes a dilemma needing to be addressed.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

A Peterborough police officer was shot multiple times in Lindsay, Ont. during the execution of a drug warrant.

Kawartha Lakes police said that around 11:20 a.m. Wednesday, an officer was shot in a residential area near Georgian and Melbourne Sts. in Lindsay. People at the scene told local media that another person inside the Georgian St. house was shot and killed.

The officer was rushed to Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay. By the time he was transferred, his condition was considered “guarded,” which is between critical and stable, a hospital official said.

Helicopter transport provider Ornge said its emergency crews airlifted a male in his late 30s to the Toronto Island airport. He was then transported to a trauma centre at St. Michael’s Hospital at around 2 p.m. Police presence downtown near Yonge and Queen Sts. has caused traffic and TTC delays.

A police convoy also escorted the victim’s family to hospital.

There is no further information on the extent of the injuries, or the circumstances surrounding the shooting. A police report said “the area has been cordoned off and there is no threat to the public.”

Toronto police will never again use the controversial crowd control technique known as kettling, which was employed for the first and last time in the city’s history during last year’s G20 summit.

The decision was revealed to the Star in a police statement Tuesday, along with the information that two Toronto police superintendents were “responsible” for commanding and controlling G20 policing in the city outside the security fence.

On June 27, the final day of the G20 summit, some 300 protesters and bystanders were boxed in, or kettled, by riot police at Queen St. and Spadina Ave. for about four hours.

Not long after the enclosure, rain began to fall in torrents as some stood shivering in summer dresses and tank tops.

“The crowd control technique implemented at Queen & Spadina on June 27 will not be used again by the Toronto Police Service,” spokeswoman Meaghan Gray said in the statement, a response to a list of G20-related questions sent by the Star.

The incident, broadcast live on TV, was the dramatic climax of the summit weekend, which saw black-clad rioters rampaging through downtown Toronto and the largest mass arrest in Canadian history.

The vast majority, if not all the people detained at Queen and Spadina, were released without charge shortly after 10 p.m.

It has been unclear since the summit whether kettling would still be on the table as a Toronto police tactic. It is among the many issues being investigated internally and in a Toronto Police Services Board review.

Asked whether it’s fair to say police have decided it was wrong to kettle people at Queen and Spadina, Gray said, “No, I don’t think that was the answer I provided.”

Gray refused to provide more information on why and when the decision was made until the release of the police internal review’s report.

The report is in its final stages and “will be released as soon as practical,” said Gray.

Nathalie Des Rosiers, general counsel for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, was heartened to hear Toronto police have ditched kettling.

“It is a violation of Section 9 of the Charter, which provides and guarantees the freedom from arbitrary detention,” she said.

“It rounds up, detains and prevents from moving large groups of people for which the police have no evidence that they have done anything wrong.”

For Justin Stayshyn, a 36-year-old freelance writer caught up in the kettle on his way home to Queen and John Sts., the effects still linger.

Stayshyn said he doesn’t put much stock in the police statement because they have done nothing to engender his trust following the summit.

Stayshyn said Toronto police have lost all credibility on G20 issues, citing officers’ reluctance to cooperate with the Special Investigations Unit and the removal of name tags during the summit, among other issues.

“When it comes to the G20, I don’t trust anything they say.”

Instead, Stayshyn would prefer police come out in support of a full public inquiry and airing of all policing actions that weekend.

“They need to provide something that will actually make us trust them again and then we can talk,” he said. “Nobody can make any promises about what they’ll do next time, because we don’t know what they did this time.”

In April, the British High Court deemed the kettling of G20 protesters during a 2009 summit illegal.

The ruling said that while police were working in “good faith,” corralling 4,500 demonstrators inside a Climate Camp protest for three hours was an overreaction.

“The police may only take such preventive action as a last resort catering for situations about to descend into violence,” the decision stated. “The test of necessity is met only in truly extreme and exceptional cases.”

Thousands of people may now sue Scotland Yard for false imprisonment in relation to the London kettling incident, according to The Guardian newspaper.

Toronto lawyer Murray Klippenstein is heading up a $45 million class action suit against the Toronto Police Services Board over police actions during the G20.

“This is a fairly momentous decision and recommendation by the police,” said Klippenstein of the choice to never use kettling again.

“Maybe we have all learned something from what happened during the G20. But maybe we should have figured this out before then.”

One weekend last June, the country watched two stunning sights in the heart of its largest city during protests against the G20 summit: In the first, a small number of demonstrators smashed shop windows, vandalized banks and set fire to police cars. In the second, police made the largest mass arrests in the country’s history, during which they were accused of roughing up protesters, throwing them in an inhumane makeshift prison and conducting numerous arbitrary searches.

A year later, investigators have methodically tracked down many of those accused of trashing the city that weekend, but holding police themselves to account for alleged wrongdoings has proven more difficult.

Monday, June 20, 2011

A year after the G20, public trust in the city’s police is at an all-time low — and so is the morale of many officers.

The situation has worsened with each new allegation of police brutality and little has been done to restore the faith in those sworn to serve and protect Toronto.

“It’s become embarrassing to say you’re a Toronto cop,” said one of several officers who recently spoke to the Toronto Sun on condition of anonymity.

He said it has become a daily concern and many cops are many are fed up with being “the whipping boys” for decisions they had no hand in making.

“Cops are leaving Toronto in droves,” he said, explaining many have either transferred to other forces, are in the process of doing so, or are getting out of policing.

He and others said a lot of strides had been made in improving community relations in recent years and their efforts were destroyed in one weekend.

Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair has also come under fire, largely because he took responsibility for the decision-making. But Blair’s officers continue to support him.

“The chief was not the problem,” insisted one cop with knowledge of how the operation was administered. The officer said the RCMP actually “called the shots” at the G20. He said Blair would have entrusted his officers to make decisions as needed “on the ground,” but “his hands were tied.”

“When the trouble went down, our officers wanted to go and get the bad guys, but they were told not to,” one cop said, referring to the Black Bloc’s rampage up Yonge St. “That’s b-------”

He added the chief only took the reigns on the Sunday night after seeing disturbing media images of a kettled crowd of elderly, disabled and children shivering in the rain at Queen St. W. and Spadina Ave.

The cop claims RCMP officers left Toronto soon after “without leaving so much as a cellphone number to get hold of them.”

“They cleared out of town like there was a bad smell in the room,” he said. “They ran away but the smell lingered.”

The cop said just as officers fear repercussions for speaking out, the chief has his own pressures.

Officers may not fault their chief for what transpired during the G20, but many take issue with his performance since.

“I think he’s had a lot of bad advice,” said one cop.

Blair refused to talk to the Sun for the anniversary of the G20, a move some officers feel was another misstep.

They said the chief should have used the opportunity to apologize to the public.

“He needs to say, ‘I’m sorry if some people feel they’ve been treated unfairly by my officers and I will ensure any allegations of wrongdoing are looked into,’” one cop said. “And explain we need to find a way to work through this together and move forward.”

Toronto Police Association President Mike McCormack maintained the officers he speaks to are “proud” of their G20 efforts and the public remains supportive of them.

“Overall, the public I think is sophisticated enough to make the distinction between the G20 and everyday policing in Toronto,” he said, adding it’s unfair that cops have been “tried in the media.”

But Dorian Barton said if not for the media the cop who allegedly beat him at Queen’s Park would never have been charged.

The SIU opened his case three times before charging Const. Glenn Weddell, whose face was splashed in the news while officers claimed not to be able to identify him.

Although a year has passed, Barton agreed an apology is the way to start rebuilding the public’s trust.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Just over a week after a report was released (First Nations Under Surveillance) on how the Harper government has been using INAC to “manage potential First Nation unrest” since 2006, a native community named as a “hot spot” for “aboriginal unrest” was raided by no less than 500 members of the “Aboriginal Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (A-CFSEU). The day before the raid, the Mohawks of Kanehsata:ke sent a warning letter to the municipality of Oka over a mining deal signed earlier in the month with Augyva Mining Resources. Coincidence? Not in these times.

In the summer of 1990, similar breaches of the community's sovereignty over its own territory provoked a “crisis” when the town of Oka planned development of a golf course in the Pines, where generations of Mohawk people lay buried. For so many of us, that summer was a turning point in our own journeys of decolonization as Indian people. Much like the American Indian Movement was for the generation before us, the sight of our people rising up and fighting back reminded us not only of our own power, but also reawakened a sense of dignity and resolute pride, as we watched people just like us stare down armed perpetrators of state violence.

Sent on June 13th and printed on the community's letterhead, the letter ends by counselling the residents and mayor of Oka: “We therefore urge you to meet with our representatives as soon as possible to avoid any future conflict and promote a relationship based upon peaceful co-existence.”

A day later, there is a massive police raid resulting in the arrests of 55 people, which means that there had been allotted approximately 9 officers per person, a show of force far stronger than actually required. Such overblown tactics, so neatly covered by mainstream media as a drug bust sanctioned by the chief and band council, make it apparent that the operation was intended to show the people of Kanehsata:ke and Akwesasne (and all of us who were watching) the repression we will face if we step out of line.

That was clearly the message of the June 14th raid on these communities, reinforced by the soundbites of native people who see state violence crackdowns as the solution to drug use and addiction on reserves.

We can all see if we look down the generations, an unbroken line of violence against our people that has been carried out, sometimes justifying their actions by saying “they were selling drugs”, sometimes by saying “they were dancing the Ghost Dance”. Often enough, genocidal policies like residential schools, mass “adoptions” of native kids into white families and forcible sterilization and rape of native women and girls were carried out with no justification at all.

To justify state violence against our own people reinforces the idea that we are powerless to protect and defend ourselves. Have we forgotten our own power so much that we believe that the police are there to help us solve the problems they themselves are helping to create? Do we not have within our own communities the power to confront those who are pushing drugs as a means of making a living? In reality, the police themselves are often the ones in control of these drug rings and profit off them, or use them to control the people. We have seen this to be true in our own lives, sometimes in our own families.

We also know that there is a program of targeted state violence against our communities, and that INAC, just like the Indian Agents of our parents and grandparents' generation, is a tool used by the Canadian government to assimilate us and make us “Canadians” or, we resist—to break us down and exterminate us. We are only desirable in Canada as warriors if we are conquered warriors or “peaceful warriors” who would never dare raise arms against our oppressors, no matter what the cost to our own lives. Meanwhile, if Canadian soldiers said the same thing, they would be discharged immediately.

Why is it that the only acceptable violence is that which is committed by the powerful against the powerless? Why should it acceptable to us that the RCMP, SQ and goon squads like the Kanehsatake Police be allowed to use violence to protect us against our own people, in a community which has been identified by the RCMP and CSIS as a “hot spot” for native unrest, at the very site of the “Oka crisis”? Were some of those police officers who stormed the reserve on June 14th the same ones who had been there in 1990? How many of them bragged to each other about their success in “taming” a community whose resistance galvanized an era of native uprising?

A spokesperson for the police raid stated the intention of the raid clearly, and it had nothing to do with stopping drug use in our communities: "We have disrupted (Kanesatake and Akwesasne 's) capacity to use aboriginal territories for its activities … we can catch them, no matter where they are." An RCMP also commented, ironically, that the raid showed that Kanesata:ke “residents delivered a clear message (that) violence and intimidation will not be tolerated.”

Can the violence and intimidation of fifty five native people, no matter their alleged crimes, possibly come anywhere close to the violence and intimidation of the police and the military, not just in 1990 but for the last 500 years? Do they just expect us to tolerate their brutal, ongoing intimidation and violence, but leap at every chance to cooperate with them against our own people?

This show of force should not be held up as a trophy for cooperation, when we know that the reason our people are numbing themselves with alcohol and drugs is because of these attacks on our communities: attacks on our spirituality, our language, the desecration of the sacred and our way of life have made us afraid of the very source of our own power, the power that these attacks are intended to destroy.

This is why we must always continue to resist all attacks on us made by the government and corporations, especially those they tell us are for our own good. The same thing has been said for generations to us. It is being said all over right now to every original person unwilling to cooperate in their own and others' desecration.

It was said to the people at Oka in 1990. It was said to the mothers, fathers and grandparents of children who were taken away to residential school. It will likely be said to you the next time you stand in front of a judge, or in a classroom, or in a jail or detention centre. Didn't they tell us then that it was “for our own good”, that things would go easier for us if we just cooperated—their show of force always reinforcing the underlying message that we were no match for them. Better just to fall in line.

But if that is true, then why does the government and corporations who oppress and exploit us “for our own good” tremble every time we threaten to blockade a railway, bridge or highway? As the First Nations Under Surveillance report says:

“One insight emerges strongly here: most threatening of all to security and government forces is coordinated First Nations action. This can be seen clearly from the reports. At one point in the 2007 INAC to RCMP briefing, concern is expressed about a First Nations conference because, “The 2006 Numbered Treaty Conference proposed a ‘national’ movement of independent actions to express discontent.” Also that “a large concern in 2007 was the potential for a broad national coordinated series of local and regional political actions by First Nations.”

“What the INAC and RCMP briefings show is that there needs to be unity on the ground with coordinated political actions between First Nations Peoples in order to protect, defend and advance First Nation pre-existing sovereignty, and First Nation Aboriginal and Treaty rights to lands and resources. Divide and conquer tactics can only be met with new strategies of alliance-building, and by bringing the leadership back down to the land.”

Clearly, they fear what they cannot control. And since neither the land or the people of the land were made to be controlled and cannot be controlled, they will fear the land and they will fear us and will use every means in their power, including using our own people (especially the wounded, lost and sick) to justify taking more control over us using police, proprety and poisons.

Wake up! More police (or more police cooperation) will not stop us from using drugs and alcohol and it won't stop the dealers and pushers either. It won't stop us from joining gangs. It won't stop us from being sexually, physically or emotionally abused, or abusive. More police (or more police cooperation) will not stop suicide. More police will not find missing women or bring peace to the murdered and disappeared. More police will only bring us more police.

We are and have everything we need, we just have to start being it and doing it like we did before there were any police to make us think we need them. We don't need police. We need the land and the water, and each other.

It is not just organizations like Defenders of the Land which are gathering native people together to protect what we all need to survive, as Judy Rebick mistakenly assumed in her recent article, as though we have not been defending the land for half a millenia. No organization could ever encompass 500 civilizations' 500 years of resistance. We are each of us: the born, the unborn and the dead, beads strung across all our homelands, breaking apart colonial borders, speaking through walls: a terrifying sound to those who seek to control and silence us.

“The white man does not understand the Indian for the reason that he does not understand America. He is too far removed from its formative processes. The roots of the tree of his life have not yet grasped the rock and soil. The white man is still troubled with primitive fears; he still has in his consciousness the perils of this frontier continent, some of its fastnesses not yet having yielded to his questing footsteps and inquiring eyes. The man from Europe is still a foreigner and an alien.But in the Indian the spirit of the land is still vested; it will be until other men are able to divine and meet its rhythms....Only to the white man was nature a 'wilderness' and only to him was the land 'infested' with 'wild' animals and 'savage' people. To us it was beautiful and we were surrounded with the blessings of the Great Mystery.” -Chief Luther Standing Bear (Oglala Sioux), 1933.

“Our instincts kicked in and we said the women have to go to the front, because it's our obligation to do that, to protect the land, to protect our Mother. And I can remember looking at the faces of the S.W.A.T. team and they were all scared. They were like young babies who had never met something so strong; who had never met a spirit, because we were fighting something without a spirit. There was no thought to it; they were like robots.” -Katsi'tsákwas (Mohawk Nation), 1990.

Friday, June 17, 2011

Johannes Mehserle, the former BART [San Francisco/Bay Area Rapid Transit] police officer who killed Oscar Grant on New Year’s Day in 2009, has been released from jail. He received a two-year prison sentence but was released just after midnight on Monday morning after serving 11 months behind bars since his July 8 conviction last year.

At a protest on Sunday afternoon at the Fruitvale BART station where Grant was killed, several hundred gathered to decry Mehserle’s early release and demand the Department of Justice file civil rights charges. Grant’s family and friends also gathered to remember the father and son they lost so brutally a year and a half ago.

For his family, the grief over losing Grant and anger over Mehserle’s criminal trial is still fresh.

“Sophina and Tatiana, they’re lonely,” said Grant’s sister-in-law Yolanda Mesa. Sophina Mesa was Grant’s partner and their daughter Tatiana was 5 years old when her father was killed. “It’s such a lonely feeling, and it’s still so hard. Sometimes the kids are watching cartoons and there’ll be a news flash about Oscar Grant. How do you explain that to these kids?”

“Today Tatiana handed me this [tissue] and says, ‘This is in case you want to cry,’ but I really think inside she wants to cry.”

“It’s just really pathetic that he’s getting out,” Mesa said. “Mehserle damn near executed somebody in front of the whole world and he walks in 11 months? Are you kidding me?”

“So many people have died at the hands of the police and all they have to do is say, ‘Oh, I think they were armed,’ or, ‘This looked like a handgun,’ and the police get away with it,” Mesa said. “It’s the thing for the cops to say and they know they can get off. It’s painting the message that a badge is a license to kill.”

Signs at the demonstration pointed to the case of Derrick Jones, a black man who was killed by Oakland Police last year. Oakland police said they shot him because they believed Jones was reaching for a gun; BART police officers said the same of Grant. Both Jones and Grant were unarmed.

“This will happen over and over and over again,” Rosemary Hernandez, Sophina Mesa’s mother and Tatiana Grant’s grandmother told the crowd of protesters. “It’s not just to blacks, it’s not just to Latinos. It’s everybody that’s a minority.”

“This needs to stop. You always think it won’t happen to me, and believe me I thought that. … The only way this is going to stop is if we all stick together.”

Mehserle shot Grant in the back while he lay face down on the BART platform in front of a train full of witnesses. The shooting was filmed on multiple cell phone videos and led to several nights of protest in Oakland immediately after the footage was uploaded onto YouTube. Since then, protesters have demonstrated at every key milestone in the case — when the Alameda County district attorney filed murder charges, when the trial was moved to Los Angeles, and when the verdict was returned.

Mehserle faced second-degree murder charges for killing Grant. During the trial Mehserle testified that he meant to [taser] Grant but instead pulled his gun. Last summer a Los Angeles jury found Mehserle guilty of involuntary manslaughter with an additional gun enhancement. Mehserle faced up to 14 years in prison. Judge Robert Perry stunned many when he handed Mehserle the most lenient sentence possible and gave him credit for time he’d already served behind bars.

“I just feel hurt inside,” said Mario Pangelina, Mesa’s brother, who was on the same train two cars behind Grant the night of the shooting. “The whole trial was a joke.”

Pangelina and Mesa’s other brother Carlos Romero remembered Grant as a proud father and a respectful, loving son.

“I remember when he found out what they were having, he put two flags up on his car that said: ‘It’s a girl. It’s a girl.’” Romero said. “He kept them on there till the wind and the rain took them down.”

“He just popped up with them on everybody, they were big pink flags like those Raider ones people put on their cars,” Pangelina said. “He was so happy, he kept pink shoes in his car.”

Grant’s daughter is 7 years old now.

“Don’t forget Oscar Grant,” said Jack Bryson, whose two sons were detained with Grant and were by his side on the train platform when he was shot, “but let’s never forget his child, right here, Tatiana.”

Tatiana stood alongside Bryson in front of the television crowds, her eyes squinting in the sunlight. She leaned on a protest sign demanding justice for her father.

“The last four or five nights, it’s hard to sleep at night,” Bryson said on Sunday. “And how do you think it will feel tomorrow morning when Johannes Mehserle is released? He’ll be happy, but as family and friends we will be grieving forever.”

Grant’s family has a $25 million civil suit pending against the six BART police officers who were on the platform that night. John Burris, the Grant family’s attorney, said that lawsuit, which was set to begin in late May, is on hold. He said he and other family members met with the Department of Justice several months ago to press for charges to be filed, but have heard no word yet on the DOJ’s pending investigation.

Burris acknowledged that criminal cases are blunt tools for demanding police accountability because convictions are so rare, but said that civil suits especially open the way for long-term reforms.

Until then, Grant’s family continues to grieve everyday. Justice has been elusive, and his death is still difficult to explain.

“When is Oscar going to come home?” Bryson said Grant’s younger cousins and nieces still occasionally wonder, a year and a half since he died. Bryson keeps a photo of Grant in his cell phone, which the kids ask him about.

“They’ve asked me: Is he going to call from heaven?”

Julianne Hing is co-editor of the ColorLines magazine blog, RaceWire, and editorial assistant of ColorLines magazine.

Monday, June 13, 2011

The militarization of American police--no doubt a blowback effect of the military empire--has become an unfortunate part of American life. In fact, it says something about our reliance on the military that federal agencies having nothing whatsoever to do with national defense now see the need for their own paramilitary units. Among those federal agencies laying claim to their own law enforcement divisions are the State Department, Department of Education, Department of Energy, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service, to name just a few. These agencies have secured the services of fully armed agents--often in SWAT team attire--through a typical bureaucratic sleight-of-hand provision allowing for the creation of Offices of Inspectors General (OIG). Each OIG office is supposedly charged with not only auditing their particular agency’s actions but also uncovering possible misconduct, waste, fraud, theft, or certain types of criminal activity by individuals or groups related to the agency’s operation. At present, there are 73 such OIG offices in the federal government that, at times, perpetuate a police state aura about them.

For example, it was heavily armed agents from one such OIG office, working under the auspices of the Department of Education, who forced their way into the home of a California man, handcuffed him, and placed his three children (ages 3, 7, and 11) in a squad car while they conducted a search of his home. This federal SWAT team raid, which is essentially what it was, on the home of Anthony Wright on Tuesday, June 7, 2011, was allegedly intended to ferret out information on Wright’s estranged wife, Michelle, who no longer lives with him and who was suspected of financial aid fraud (early news reports characterized the purpose of the raid as being over Michelle’s delinquent student loans). According to Wright, he was awakened at 6 am by the sound of agents battering down his door and, upon descending the stairs, was immediately subdued by police. One neighbor actually witnessed the team of armed agents surround the house and, after forcing entry, they “dragged [Wright] out in his boxer shorts, threw him to the ground and handcuffed him.”

This is not the first time a SWAT team has been employed in non-violent scenarios. Nationwide, SWAT teams have been employed to address an astonishingly trivial array of criminal activity or mere community nuisances: angry dogs, domestic disputes, improper paperwork filed by an orchid farmer, and misdemeanor marijuana possession, to give a brief sampling. In some instances, SWAT teams are even employed, in full armament, to perform routine patrols.

How did we allow ourselves to travel so far down the road to a police state? While we are now grappling with a power-hungry police state at the federal level, the militarization of domestic American law enforcement is largely the result of the militarization of local police forces, which are increasingly militaristic in their uniforms, weaponry, language, training, and tactics and have come to rely on SWAT teams in matters that once could have been satisfactorily performed by traditional civilian officers. Even so, this transformation of law enforcement at the local level could not have been possible without substantial assistance from on high.

Frequently justified as vital tools necessary to combat terrorism and deal with rare but extremely dangerous criminal situations, such as those involving hostages, SWAT teams--which first appeared on the scene in California in the 1960s--have now become intrinsic parts of local law enforcement operations, thanks in large part to substantial federal assistance. For example, in 1994, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Defense agreed to a memorandum of understanding that enabled the transfer of federal military technology to local police forces. Following the passage of the Defense Authorization Security Act of 1997, which was intended to accelerate the transfer of military equipment to domestic law enforcement departments, local police acquired military weaponry--gratuitously or at sharp discounts--at astonishing rates. Between 1997 and 1999, the agency created by the Defense Authorization Security Act conveyed 3.4 million orders of military equipment to over 11,000 local police agencies in all 50 states. Not only did this vast abundance of military weaponry contribute to a more militarized police force, but it also helped spur the creation of SWAT teams in jurisdictions across the country.

In one of the few quantitative studies on the subject, criminologist Peter Kraska found in 1997 that close to 90 percent of cities with populations exceeding 50,000 and at least 100 sworn officers had at least one paramilitary unit. In a separate study, Kraska determined that, as of 1996, 65 percent of towns with populations between 25,000 and 50,000 had a paramilitary unit, with an additional 8 percent intending to establish one.

While the frequency of SWAT operations has increased dramatically in recent years, jumping from 1,000 to 40,000 raids per year by 2001, it appears to have less to do with increases in violent crime and more to do with law enforcement bureaucracy and a police state mentality. Indeed, according to Kraska’s estimates, 75-80 percent of SWAT callouts are now for mere warrant service. In some jurisdictions, SWAT teams are responsible for servicing 100 percent of all drug warrants issued. A Maryland study, conducted in the wake of a botched raid in 2008 that resulted in the mistaken detainment of Berwyn Heights mayor Cheye Calvo and the shooting deaths of his two dogs, corroborates Kraska’s findings. According to the study, SWAT teams are deployed 4.5 times per day in Maryland with 94 percent of those deployments being for something as minor as serving search or arrest warrants. In the county in which the Calvo raid occurred, more than 50 percent of SWAT operations carried out were for misdemeanors or non-serious felonies.

This overuse of paramilitary forces and increased reliance on military weaponry has inevitably resulted in a pervasive culture of militarism in domestic law enforcement. Police mimicry of the military is enhanced by the war-heavy imagery and metaphors associated with law enforcement activity: the war on drugs, the war on crime, etc. Moreover, it is estimated that 46 percent of paramilitary units were trained by “active-duty military experts in special operations.” In turn, the military mindset adopted by many SWAT members encourages a tendency to employ lethal force. After all, soldiers are authorized to terminate enemy combatants. As Lawrence Korb, a former official in the Reagan Administration, put it, soldiers are “trained to vaporize, not Mirandize.”

Ironically, despite the fact that SWAT team members are subject to greater legal restraints than their counterparts in the military, they are often less well-trained in the use of force than are the special ops soldiers on which they model themselves. Indeed, SWAT teams frequently fail to conform to the basic precautions required in military raids. For instance, after reading about a drug raid in Missouri, an army officer currently serving in Afghanistan commented:

My first thought on reading this story is this: Most American police SWAT teams probably have fewer restrictions on conducting forced entry raids than do US forces in Afghanistan. For our troops over here to conduct any kind of forced entry, day or night, they have to meet one of two conditions: have a bad guy (or guys) inside actively shooting at them; or obtain permission from a 2-star general, who must be convinced by available intelligence (evidence) that the person or persons they’re after is present at the location, and that it’s too dangerous to try less coercive methods.

Remember, SWAT teams originated as specialized units dedicated to defusing extremely sensitive, dangerous situations. As the role of paramilitary forces has expanded, however, to include involvement in nondescript police work targeting nonviolent suspects, the mere presence of SWAT units has actually injected a level of danger and violence into police-citizen interactions that was not present as long as these interactions were handled by traditional civilian officers. In one drug raid, for instance, an unarmed pregnant woman was shot as she attempted to flee the police by climbing out a window. In another case, the girlfriend of a drug suspect and her young child crouched on the floor in obedience to police instructions during the execution of a search warrant. One officer proceeded to shoot the family dogs. His fellow officer, in another room, mistook the shots for hostile gunfire and fired blindly into the room where the defendant crouched, killing her and wounding her child.

What we are witnessing is an inversion of the police-civilian relationship. Rather than compelling police officers to remain within constitutional bounds as servants of the people, ordinary Americans are being placed at the mercy of law enforcement. This is what happens when paramilitary forces are used to conduct ordinary policing operations, such as executing warrants on nonviolent defendants. Yet studies indicate that paramilitary raids frequently result in misdemeanor convictions. An investigation by Denver’s Rocky Mountain News revealed that of the 146 no-knock raids conducted in Denver in 2000, only 49 resulted in charges. And only two resulted in prison sentences for suspects targeted in the raids.

General incompetence, collateral damage (fatalities, property damage, etc.) and botched raids tend to go hand in hand with an overuse of paramilitary forces. In some cases, officers misread the address on the warrant. In others, they simply barge into the wrong house or even the wrong building. In another subset of cases (such as the Department of Education raid on Anthony Wright’s home), police conduct a search of a building where the suspect no longer resides. SWAT teams have even on occasion conducted multiple, sequential raids on wrong addresses or executed search warrants despite the fact that the suspect is already in police custody. Police have also raided homes on the basis of mistaking the presence or scent of legal substances for drugs. Incredibly, these substances have included tomatoes, sunflowers, fish, elderberry bushes, kenaf plants, hibiscus, and ragweed.

All too often, botched SWAT team raids have resulted in one tragedy after another for the residents with little consequences for law enforcement. Judges tend to afford extreme levels of deference to police officers who have mistakenly killed innocent civilians but do not afford similar leniency to civilians who have injured police officers in acts of self-defense. Even homeowners who mistake officers for robbers can be sentenced for assault or murder if they take defensive actions resulting in harm to police.

And as journalist Radley Balko shows in his in-depth study of police militarization, the shock-and-awe tactics utilized by many SWAT teams only increases the likelihood that someone will get hurt. Drug warrants, for instance, are typically served by paramilitary units late at night or shortly before dawn. Unfortunately, to the unsuspecting homeowner--especially in cases involving mistaken identities or wrong addresses--a raid can appear to be nothing less than a violent home invasion, with armed intruders crashing through their door. The natural reaction would be to engage in self-defense. Yet such a defensive reaction on the part of a homeowner, particularly a gun owner, will spur officers to employ lethal force.

That’s exactly what happened to Jose Guerena, the young ex-Marine who was killed after a SWAT team kicked open the door of his Arizona home during a drug raid and opened fire. According to news reports, Guerena, 26 years old and the father of two young children, grabbed a gun in response to the forced invasion but never fired. In fact, the safety was still on his gun when he was killed. Police officers were not as restrained. The young Iraqi war veteran was allegedly fired upon 71 times. Guerena had no prior criminal record, and the police found nothing illegal in his home.

The problems inherent in these situations are further compounded by the fact that SWAT teams are granted “no-knock” warrants at high rates such that the warrants themselves are rendered practically meaningless. This sorry state of affairs is made even worse by recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings that have essentially done away with the need for a “no-knock” warrant altogether, giving the police authority to disregard the protections afforded American citizens by the Fourth Amendment.

In the process, Americans are rendered altogether helpless and terror-stricken as a result of these confrontations with the police. Indeed, “terrorizing” is a mild term to describe the effect on those who survive such vigilante tactics. “It was terrible. It was the most frightening experience of my life. I thought it was a terrorist attack,” said 84-year-old Leona Goldberg, a victim of such a raid. Yet this type of “terrorizing” activity is characteristic of the culture that we have created. As author Eugene V. Walker, a former Boston University professor, wrote some years ago, “A society in which people are already isolated and atomized, divided by suspicious and destructive rivalry, would support a system of terror better than a society without much chronic antagonism.”

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Every election campaign, opposition parties invariably promise to reform hiring of senior personnel to the government’s very wide circle of boards, councils, committees, Crown corporations, and agencies. It accuses the outgoing government of patronage — of hiring friends and party supporters on the age-old principle that politics is not what you know, but who you know. And usually, the incoming government fails abysmally to uphold its old, lofty principles.

Some prefer to refer to patronage simply as corruption. In some cases certainly that is true. I will go with the milder term, however, both because it captures a much broader area of activity (most of the appointments are salaried, but some board members get only expenses, per diems, etc) and because it is usually impossible to prove a clear link in any case. Since 2006, the general trend is to hire people who are notably Conservative or who have no apparent party loyalties. Prior to 2006, a similar trend favoured Liberal over Conservative appointees. Stephen Harper once denounced this system as the Prime Minister rewarding his “buddies,” but while in office has been uninterested in changing the system. Instead he has continued to appoint party insiders and supporters at a frenzied pace, even to the Senate, which he once demanded be fully democratized through elected Senators with term limits. Days after the May 2011 general election, he even appointed several losing candidates to the Senate, so that they could have a seat in Parliament anyways after being denied one by the public.

I have named this list the Patronage List. A century ago, this was literally the name for a shortlist of preferred contractors handed out to government departments. Now the process is much less formal. The following table spans the Harper Government™ and is a woefully incomplete work in progress. I want to stress that it does not prove that these people are incompetent or corrupt in any way whatsoever; it simply establishes that there is a clear pattern in which people who have supported or worked for the Conservative Party receive a disproportionate number of government positions.

Currently, according to the government, there are about 2000 jobs within the gift of ministers and the prime minister, which they lavish upon friends, colleagues, and supporters. According to Harper, his government awards about one in every three public sector appointments to Conservative Party members and donors, which is far in excess of their actual percentage of the population (the party’s membership roster stands at just 300,000 or so). Moreover, his own figure may obviously be an understatement. This figure was from the minority government; it remains to be seen what will happen between 2011 and 2015.

This page will consist of two tables, mainly for the sake of manageability. The first table consists of government appointments since May 2, 2011. The second consists of appointments made by the Harper minority government, between 2006 and 2011.

Search:Individual Organization ExplanationAlain Bolduc Quebec Superior Court Conservative donor ($425) appointed puisne judge for Trois-Rivieres in 2010.Alan D. MacInnes Manitoba Court of Appeal Conservative donor in the Mulroney era, appointed to the bench by Mulroney in 1992 and promoted by the Harper Government in 2007.Alan Mostyn Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Father of 2006 Conservative candidate Michael Mostyn. Appointed in 2006.Alcide Boudreault Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative candidate in 2006. Appointed as chairman for Quebec in 2008.Alexander Sosna Ontario Superior Court Mulroney-era PC candidate, appointed in 2006.Alex Dantzer National Parole Board 2006 nominee, appointed in 2009 to Pacific division.Alex Pazaratz Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed a judge in the family division in 2006.Alice McCarron Canadian Museum of Nature Co-Chair of Nova Scotia PC Leadership 2010 convention, appointed in 2010 to the Board of Trustees.Allan Warrack National Research Council (NRC) Former Alberta PC Cabinet minister under Peter Lougheed. Appointed to the Council in 2008.Al Santing Windsor Port Authority Donor ($955.31), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009.Andre Bachand United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Former PC MP and Conservative candidate, appointed in 2009 as the Canadian Ambassador to UNESCO.Andre Plourde Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) Mulroney-era PC MP. Appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Andrew J. Goodman Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed judge ex officio in 2009.Andrew Nickerson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009.Andrew Saxton Canadian Commercial Corporation Father of MP Andrew Saxton (elected 2008), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2010.Angela Vautour Veterans Review and Appeal Board 2004 Conservative candidate and former PC MP, appointed in 2009.Anish Makim Downsview Park Inc. Chief financial officer for then-Ontario MPP (now finance minister) Jim Flaherty's leadership campaign in 2004. Appointed to the Board of Directors in 2007.Ann-Marie Applin National Film Board Vice-Chair of the Canadian Alliance Founding Dinner in 2000Ann Dillon Citizenship and Immigration Canada Donor ($750), appointed a citizenship judge in 2009.Anne Marie Kains Citizenship and Immigration Canada Donor ($1100), appointed a citizenship judge in 2009.Ann MacQuarrie Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($382.50), appointed in 2008Anthony Leoni Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1025), appointed in 2009.Arlene Ponting Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Partner of Conservative backer Phil Ponting, appointed to NSERC in 2007.Arni Thorsteinson Canadian Museum for Human Rights Former Manitoba PC fundraiser. Appointed in 2007 as chairman of the Advisory Committee.Arthur L. Hamilton Federal Bridge Corporation Conservative Party lead counsel, having representing them in the In and Out laundering case; appointed to the corporate Board of Directors in 2006.Arthur Lust Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($350), appointed in 2009.Atam Uppal Immigration and Refugee Board Conservative nominee in Don Valley East in 2005, appointed in 2006.Barbara Baird New Brunswick Court Former New Brunswick PC leader, appointed a judge in the family division in 2007.Barbara Barry Canadian Museum of Nature Donor ($3100), appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2009.Barbara Hagerman Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island Wife of the PEI PC party financial agent and Conservative PEI chapter treasurer, Nelson Hagerman. Appointed Lieutenant-Governor in 2006.Barbara McDougall Agreement on Internal Trade Panel Former Mulroney Cabinet minister, appointed in 2006.Barry Kyle Belledune Port Authority Donor ($1000), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009.Barry Moore Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) Mulroney-era MP in Quebec, named to the Board in 2007 by Jim Flaherty.Basile Chiasson Belledune Port Authority Identified as close to the chief of staff of New Brunswick PC leader David Alward in 2011. Appointed to the Port Authority in 2008.Benoit Bouchard Indian Affairs Canada Mulroney-era Cabinet minister, appointed as Chief Federal Negotiator with the Quebec Innu in 2006.Benoit Bouchard (2) Canadian Museum for Human Rights Mulroney Cabinet minister, appointed to the Advisory Committee in 2007.Bhagwant Parmar Canadian Tourism Commission Donor ($201), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Bill McKnight Treaty Commissioner of Saskatchewan Mulroney-era Cabinet minister appointed to this post in 2007 and re-appointed in 2011.Bill Saunderson Public Sector Pension Investment Board Former Ontario PC Harris government Cabinet minister, appointed in 2006.Bob Beccarea Canadian Artists and Producers Professional Relations Tribunal Donor ($500), appointed in 2009.Bob Mills National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Alliance and then Conservative MP until retirement in 2008.Bob Runciman Senator Former Ontario PC Cabinet minister, appointed in 2009.Bonnie Dupont Bank of Canada Donor ($1000), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009.Bonnie Staples-Lyon Royal Canadian Mint Aide to former Manitoba PC premier Gary Filmon, appointed to RCM Board of Directors in 2008.Bradley Farquhar International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development 2006 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2009 to the Board of Directors.Bradley Green New Brunswick Court of Appeal Former New Brunswick PC Cabinet minister, appointed judge in 2009.Brent Taylor Veterans Review and Appeal Board 2006 New Brunswick PC candidate, appointed in 2009.Brian Abrams Ontario Superior Court Conservative candidate until early 2011; stepped down, and named a family court judge.Brian Bowen Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($400), appointed in 2010Brian Coburn Citizenship and Immigration Canada Former Ontario PC Cabinet minister in the Harris government. Appointed citizenship judge in 2006.Brian Coburn Citizenship and Immigration Canada Former Ontario PC MPP, appointed a citizenship judge in 2009.Brian Henley Bank of Canada Newfoundland co-chair of the 2004 Conservative campaign. Appointed to the Board of Directors in 2011.Brian K. Johnston Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Brian Ketcheson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Manitoba Conservative candidate, appointed in 2008.Brian Mitchell Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Former PC and Conservative leadership contestant who sat on the Conservative national council before being appointed to the CBC Board of Directors in 2008.Brian O'Kurley Veterans Review and Appeal Board Former PC MP in the Mulroney era, appointed in 2009.Briat Coulter Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009.Bruce Carson Canada School of Energy and Environment Carson was a senior adviser to Prime Minister Stephen Harper prior to his appointment to the School in 2008. He was embroiled in an influence peddling scandal in 2011.Bruce Carson (2) Carbon Management Canada Carson, a former Harper senior adviser, helped establish CMC from his patronage position at the Canada School of Energy. He was embroiled in an influence peddling scandal in 2011.Bruce Gilboord Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former president of York Centre riding association. Appointed in 2008.Bruce Richards Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Campaign manager for MP Dave MacKenzie in 2008, appointed in 2010 to Ontario branch.C. Scott Shepherd Ridley Terminals Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Cameron Crowell Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former member of the South Shore PC riding association (riding of Conservative MP Gerald Keddy). Appointed in 2008.Carl Spencer Farm Credit Canada Donor ($250), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Carman Joynt Royal Canadian Mint Conservative Party auditor and donor ($1000 per year). Appointed to Mint Board of Directors in 2007.Carol Anderson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor ($250 in 2009), appointed in 2011.Carol Fletcher-Dagenais National Parole Board Federal and Ontario provincial Conservative member, appointed in 2010.Carol Hansell Royal Canadian Mint Former RCM director. Appointed in 2006, after contributing to finance minister Jim Flaherty when he was an Ontario MLA.Caroline Brown Ontario Superior Court Donor ($1000), appointed family court judge in 2009.Carol Pennycook Public-Private Partnerships Canada Ontario PC donor, appointed to the P3 Canada board.Carol Skelton Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) Former Conservative MP and Harper government revenue minister, appointed in 2010.Carol Soucy Sept-Iles Port Authority Donor ($1500), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009.Carolyn Stewart Olsen Senator Former Harper PMO Director of Strategic Communications, appointed in 2009.Casper Bloom Public Service Labour Relations Board Donor ($775), appointed chairman in 2009.Catherine Dennahower Buffalo and Port Erie Public Bridge Authority Donor ($367.27), appointed in 2008Catherine Wells National Council of Welfare Donor ($1050), appointed in 2009.Cecil Rarabeck National Research Council (NRC) Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009.Charles Doucet Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative candidate in 2006, appointed in 2007 and again in 2011.Charles W. White Newfoundland Court of Appeal Donor ($4550), appointed in 2009.Cheryl Barker Public Sector Pension Investment Board Donor ($2000), appointed a director in 2009.Cheryl Walker Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($1675), appointed to Calgary office in 2009Chris Dumfries Payments in Lieu of Taxes Dispute Advisory Panel Conservative donor ($500), appointed in 2010Chris Essex Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Former Reform activist, appointed in 2009.Chris Henley Toronto Port Authority Conservative donor and fundraiser, appointed in 2006.Chris Kluczewski Oshawa Harbour Commission Conservative and Ontario PC donor, former member of finance minister Jim Flaherty's riding association. Appointed in 2010.Christopher Bondy Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor ($4298) named a judge in early 2011.Christopher Bondy (2) Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed to the tribunal from Windsor in 2008.Christopher Hilkene National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Ontario PC donor ($585.94), appointed in 2010Cindy Silver Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative candidate in 2006, appointed in 2007.Claire-Marie Jadot Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($400), appointed in 2009.Claude Carignan Senator 2008 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2009.Claude Dallaire Quebec Superior Court Donor ($900), appointed as puisne judge for Montreal in 2009.Claude Durand Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative candidate in 2008, appointed to Quebec division in 2010.Claude F. Bennett Royal Canadian Mint Former Ontario PC Cabinet minister under Bill Davis, appointed to the RCM Board of Directors in 2007.Colin Hume Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees 2005 president of the Ajax-Pickering riding association, appointed in 2009.Colin Presizniuk Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Wildrose (then Alberta Alliance) candidate, appointed in 2006.Colin Presizniuk Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($4515), appointed in 2009.Conrad Sullivan Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board Conservative donor ($1800) appointed in 2010.Craig Beattie Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1300), appointed in 2009.Craig Rix Toronto Port Authority Aide to then-Ontario PC minister Jim Flaherty, now federal finance minister. Appointed in 2008 then 2011.Dallas Miller Alberta Court Conservative donor and 2005 campaign co-chair, appointed in 2006.Damian J. Parrent National Parole Board Conservative donor, appointed in 2010.Dane Minor Citizenship and Immigration Canada Campaign manager for Nina Grewal in 2008, chair of Langley riding association nomination committee in 2011. Appointed as a citizenship judge in 2011.Danielle Jackson Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative candidate campaign manager in 2006, appointed in 2010.Daniel Veniez Ridley Terminals Former senior aide in the Mulroney government. Appointed chairman of the board in 2007.Daniel Veniez Ridley Terminals Identified as a Mulroney-era political staffer when appointed to the Chairmanship of Ridley Terminals in 2007.Darcy Tkachuk Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($2550), appointed to Calgary office in 2009.Darrell Rushton Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Former Sobeys executive who has co-chaired and donated to Peter MacKay election campaigns in Nova Scotia. Now ACOA board member.Darren Deluca Port Alberni Port Authority Campaign manager for MP Gary Lunn in 2006. Appointed in 2011.Darren Peters Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Conservative candidate in 2004, appointed to the board in 2007.Darryl Gray National Council of Welfare 2008 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2009.David Bishop National Round Table on the Environment and Economy Conservative donor ($1000) appointed in 2010.David Braley Senator Largest donor in Harper's leadership campaign, contributed $99 000 to Conservative causes, appointed in 2010David Hoff VIA Rail Donor ($1049), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.David J. Ramsbottom Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.David L. Henderson Halifax Port Authority Conservative donor, appointed in 2010.David Laidley Bank of Canada Donor ($5650), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.David Langtry Canadian Human Rights Commission Former Manitoba Conservative candidate and campaign manager. Appointed in 2006 and promoted to Deputy Chief Commissioner the following year.David Leith Natural Resources Canada Donor ($500), appointed Advisor to the Minister on AECL Restructuring in 2009.David McLaughlin National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Former Mulroney chief of staff who advised finance minister Jim Flaherty (2006-2007), appointed in 2007.David Saxton Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Identified as Nova Scotia PC backer when he was appointed chairman for Nova Scotia in 2008.David Schioler National Parole Board Progressive Conservative candidate in 1993, appointed in 2010.David Usherwood Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Alberta PC candidate in 2004, appointed in 2009.David Wells Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board Former aide to MP Loyola Sullivan, appointed in 2010.David Young Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Ontario PC Cabinet minister under Harris and Eves. Appointed as the Ontario chairman in 2007.Denis Almon Employment Insurance Board of Referees Conservative donor, appointed in 2010.Denis Bernier Quebec Port Authority Conservative donor ($1185), appointed in 2010.Denis Jolette National Parole Board Former senior adviser to Harper minister Peter MacKay and nominated to the interim council of the unified Conservative Party in 2003. Appointed in 2008.Dennis Boyle Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former New Brunswick PC candidate, appointed as chairman for Saint John in 2007.Derek McElveny National Parole Board Judge of a Conservative student essay contest, appointed in 2010.Derwyn Shea National Seniors Council Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009.Derwyn Shea National Seniors Council Former Ontario PC MLA, appointed in 2007.Diane Bellemare Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Mother of Julie Couillard, ex-girlfriend of Maxime Bernier. Appointed in 2010.Dianne Cunningham National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Former Mike Harris Cabinet minister, appointed to the Board of Directors.Dianne Kelderman Marine Atlantic Conservative, rose to be executive vice-president of Nova Scotia PC party in 2010. Appointed to this Board of Directors in 2006.Dominic Lundrigan Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Newfoundland PC candidate, appointed in 2010.Dominique Bellemare Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative candidate in 2004 and 2008, and Conservative donor ($5000), appointed in 2010.Dominique Setton Immigration and Refugee Board Appointed in 2008 and again in 2011.Donald Amos Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Supported Gary Lunn in 2008, appointed in 2009.Donald Kirkpatrick Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former member of Barrie-Simcoe-Bradford riding association, appointed in 2010.Donald Woodley Canada Post Donor ($850), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Donald Wright VIA Rail Donor ($5000), appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors in 2009.Don Bettle Farm Credit Canada Donor ($500), appointed in 2009.Don MacKinnon National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Former PEI PC MLA, appointed to NRTEE in 2007.Don Plett Senator Conservative Party president, appointed in 2009.Dorothy O'Keefe Veterans Review and Appeal Board Former aide to MP Norm Doyle, appointed in 2010.Doug Emsley Bank of Canada Former PC Party Executive member, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Doug Finley Senator Conservative National Campaign Director in 2006, appointed in 2009.Dray Matovic Canada Tourism Commission Conservative donor in Niagara Falls, appointed to the CTC Board of Directors.Dwight Rudderham Marine Atlantic Endorsed Jamie Baillie campaign for leadership of Nova Scotia PC party after being appointed to the Board of Directors in 2007.Edouard Prefontaine Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009.Edward Gareau Ontario Superior Court Donor ($3700), appointed judge in 2009.Edward Hyer Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1614), appointed in 2009.Edwin C. Hooker Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Ontario PC Windsor riding association financial officer, appointed in 2007.Eleni Palantzas Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($325), appointed in 2010Elizabeth Marshall Senator Former Newfoundland PC Cabinet minister, appointed in 2009.Elizabeth Parr-Johnston International Development Research Centre Donor ($530), appointed to the Board of Governors in 2009.Elliot Tepper International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development Roommate of climate change denier and Tom Flanagan associate Barry Cooper. Flanagan was a close Harper aide during his first years in power. Appointed in 2011.Elwin Hermanson Canadian Grain Commission Former Reform MP and Saskatchewan Party leader, appointed chief commissioner in 2008.Eric Hansen Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Campaign worker in 2006 election, appointed in 2009.Eric Hughes Canadian Museum for Human Rights Donor ($5912.25), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Eric Mackenzie National Capital Commission Conservative nominee in 2004, former New Brunswick PC MLA, appointed in 2010Eric Stefanson VIA Rail Donor ($2650), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Eric Sykes Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Campaign organizer for MP John Cummins, appointed in 2006.Eugene Rossiter Tax Court of Canada Former president of the PC Island Fund, appointed tax judge in 2006.Eva June Landry Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Former Conservative riding association director; former Conservative director of ACOA board.Eva Landry Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation Former member of Cape Breton-Canso riding association, appointed in 2009 to the Board of Directors.Fabian Manning Senator Conservative MP who lost seat in 2008, was appointed to Senate the same year, resigned in 2011 to run again.Faith Collins Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former PC candidate, appointed in 2008.Fiona Robin Canadian Museum of Civilization President of Vancouver Quadra riding association in 2007, appointed in 2009 to the Board of Trustees.Florence Minz Canadian Museum of Nature Donor ($5916.98), appointed in 2009.France Bergeron Quebec Superior Court Donor ($1000), appointed puisne judge for Quebec in 2009.Francois Huot Quebec Superior Court Donor ($400), appointed puisne judge for Quebec in 2009.Francois Turmel Sept-Iles Port Authority Conservative donor, appointed as a director in 2010.Frank Collins Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($400), appointed in 2009.Frank MacInnis Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation Conservative campaign worker, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Frank MacInnis Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Experienced Conservative campaign worker and now-former ACOA board member.Frank Pizzitelli Tax Court of Canada Donor ($2155), appointed judge in 2009.Fraser Walsh Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Donated $500 to Conservative election campaign in 2008.Fred Dickson Senator Former Nova Scotia PC premier John Buchanan's chief of staff, appointed in 2008Fred E Dugdale Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($25) appointed to Manitoba board in 2011.Frederick Tufnell National Parole Board Donor ($250), appointed to Ontario division in 2009 and as vice-chairman of the board in 2011.Frederick Wesolowski National Parole Board Former Reform candidate, appointed in 2011.Fred Stille Thunder Bay Port Authority Mulroney-era PC candidate, appointed director of the port authority in 2006.Fred Wesolowski National Parole Board Former Reform candidate appointed as a part-time member in 2011.G. Grant Machum Telefilm Canada Donor ($2102), appointed in 2009.G. Howard Kroon National Gallery of Canada Donor ($2100), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009.Gail Baldwin Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former New Brunswick PC candidate, appointed in 2010.Gary Harron Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Ontario PC candidate and PC government appointee to various boards. Appointed as chairman of the EI board for Ontario in 2007.Gary Valcour Oshawa Harbour Commission Donor ($525) and member of finance minister Jim Flaherty's Oshawa-Whitby riding association, appointed in 2008Gavin Semple Canada Post Major donor to Saskatchewan Party (and recipient of a patronage appointment from Brad Wall, as well). Appointed in 2006.Geoff Machum Halifax Port Authority Chair of the 2006 Nova Scotia PC leadership campaign, appointed in 2009.George Cooper Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Parliamentary secretary in the Clark government. Appointed to the CBC Board of Directors in 2008.George Filliter Public Service Labour Relations Board Husband of Barbara Baird, former New Brunswick PC leader and herself a judicial patronage employee. Appointed to the board in 2008.George Gibault Citizenship and Immigration Canada Aide to Kim Campbell, appointed in 2007 as a citizenship judge.George Hungerford Payments in Lieu of Taxes Dispute Advisory Panel Donor ($3774.34), appointed in 2008George Khouri Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2008 Conservative candidate, appointed a citizenship judge in 2009.Georgette Roy Citizenship and Immigration Canada Former executive director of New Brunswick PC Party, appointed citizenship judge in 2010.George William Taylor Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Ontario PC MPP, appointed in 2008.George Young Canada Tourism Commission Described as a "longtime supporter" of industry minister Tony Clement, who appointed him to the board in 2010.Gerald Legere Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees New Brunswick PC candidate in 2006, appointed Chairman for New Brunswick in 2011.Gerard Latulippe International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development 2000 Alliance candidate and Quebec campaign co-chair, appointed President of the Board in 2009.Gilles Bernier Forum Francophone des Affaires Former Conservative MP and father of Maxime Bernier. Appointed Canadian representative to the 2006 Forum meeting.Gilles Chasles Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Identified as Conservative before appointment in 2008Gilles Duguay Citizenship and Immigration Canada Former Conservative candidate, made a citizenship judge in 2009.Gilles Guenette Immigration and Refugee Board Former Conservative candidate in Ottawa, appointed in 2006.Gilles Guenette Immigration and Refugee Board 1997 PC candidate, appointed to the Ottawa office in 2009.Gilles Robichaud Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Nova Scotia nominee in 2008, appointed same yearGiuseppe Anzini Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($726.35), appointed in 2009.Glen Findlay Canadian Wheat Board Former Manitoba Conservative Cabinet minister, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Gloria Shan Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Worked on Ontario PC Leadership campaigns in the 1980s, appointed in 2009.Gordon Stovel Canada Foundation for Innovation Donated to Mississauga South riding association, appointed to foundation Board of Directors in 2011.Graham Coveney Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Friend of an aide to former Ontario PC minister (now federal Conservative minister) Tony Clement. Appointed in 2006.Graham Wells Payments in Lieu of Taxes Dispute Advisory Panel Conservative donor ($2000), early backer of Stockwell Day's leadership campaign, appointed in 2010.Grant Driedger Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Manitoba PC nominee, appointed for Winnipeg in 2008.Greg Melchin Public-Private Partnerships Canada Alberta PC minister under Ralph Klein and Ed Stelmach until his resignation in 2007. Appointed to chair the board of P3 Canada.Gwyn Morgan Public Appointments Commission Conservative fundraiser appointed by Harper to lead this new Commission in 2006. His appointment was blocked by opposition parties and the entire commission was then shelved.Harold Beaudry Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor, appointed chair for Sudbury in 2008.Harold Gilleshammer Citizenship and Immigration Canada Aide to MP Merv Tweed, appointed in 2007 as a citizenship judge and reappointed in 2011.Harold Veale Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Alberta PC local association president, appointed in 2006.Harriet Walker National Gallery of Canada Donor ($1510.64) and wife of former Ontario PC Gordon Walker. Appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2006 and reappointed in 2009.Harriet Wolman Immigration and Refugee Board Former Ontario PC candidate, appointed as a full-time member in 2007.Harry Gaffney Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor ($500), appointed in 2010.Harvey Cenaiko National Parole Board Alberta PC MLA from 2004 to 2008, and then appointed the same year as vice-chairman of the Parole Board.Harvey Cenaiko National Parole Board Former Alberta PC Cabinet minister, appointed in 2009.Harvey Merrill Grigg Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative candidate in 2004 election. Appointed in 2007.Harvie Andre Indian Affairs Canada Former Mulroney Cabinet minister and father-in-law of the head of then-Indian Affairs minister Jim Prentice's riding association. Appointed land claims negotiator in 2006.Heather Jane Chutter Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former member of Vancouver Quadra riding association, appointed in 2009.Hector Daniel Lang Senator Former Yukon PC MLA, donor ($1000), appointed 2008Helene LeFebvre Standards Council of Canada Donor ($5900), appointed in 2009.Herbert Lee Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Conservative donor ($1063.56) appointed in 2010.Howard Bruce Transportation Appeal Tribunal Former Alliance (2000, 2004) and Conservative (2006) candidate, appointed in 2006.Howard Bruce Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada 2004 and 2006 Conservative candidate, 2000 Alliance candidate, appointed in 2009.Hugh Gaffney Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Husband of a Conservative riding association executive in South Surrey-White Rock-Cloverdale. Appointed in 2007.Ian Gregory Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor ($500), appointed in 2010Ian McClelland Northlands Former Edmonton MP, appointed as the federal representative on the Board of Directors in 2010.Ian McIlreath National Museum of Science and Technology Donor ($300), appointed to Board of Trustees in 2009.Ian McPhail RCMP Public Complaints Commission Ontario PC donor ($4886.32), appointed in 2009.Ian McPhail RCMP Public Complaints Commission Conservative donor, appointed in 2010.Irving Gerstein Senator Major donor ($12 014) and insider charged in the In and Out laundering scandal during the 2006 election, appointed in 2008.Irvin Kew Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative campaign worker, appointed in 2009.Irvin Sherman Immigration and Refugee Board Conservative donor ($250), appointed in 2010.Isabelle Hudon Competition Policy Review Panel Daughter of a Mulroney-era PC MP, Jean-Guy Hudon. Appointed in 2007.J.D. Bruce McDonald Alberta Court Former chair of National Canadian Alliance Fund, whose daughter worked in Harper's Prime Minister's Office. Appointed judge in 2006 and judge of the Court of Appeal in 2009.J. Keith Robson Federal Bridge Corporation Donor ($1200), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.J.W. Bud Bird North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization Donor ($500), appointed to organization council in 2009.Jack Reimer Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Manitoba PC MLA from 1990 to 2007, appointed as chairman for Manitoba in 2011.Jacqueline Holzman National Capital Commission Former Ottawa mayor and PC donor, appointed in 2007.Jacques Bouchard National Parole Board Conservative candidate in 2008 election and former adviser to MP Jean Pierre Blackburn. Appointed in 2010.Jacques Leger Quebec Court of Appeal PC Party President in 2000, appointed puisne judge in 2009.James Armstrong Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Donated $790 to Newfoundland Conservative campaign in 2008. Now an ACOA board member.James Caroeneto Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor, appointed before 2009.James Carpeneto Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($1400), appointed in 2009.James Love Royal Canadian Mint Donated $63 000 to leadership campaigns of Ontario PC MLA Jim Flaherty, who became Harper's finance minister. Appointed Chairman of the Board of RCM in 2006.James MacSween Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($250), appointed in 2009.James W. Sloan Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed judge ex officio to the Court of Appeal in 2011James Walsh Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($500), appointed in 2009.James Wilcox Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor ($400) appointed judge in 2010.Jamie Baillie Public Sector Pension Investment Board Chief of staff to former Nova Scotia PC premier John Hamm, appointed in 2007. Returned to provincial politics to run for PC leader in 2010.Janice Charette Human Resources and Skills Development Canada Former chief of staff to Joe Clark, appointed deputy minister of HRSDC and chairwoman of the Canada Employment Insurance Commission in 2006.Janice Sokolyk Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Wife of Manitoba PC premier Gary Filmon's aide Taras Sokolyk, associate of Harper minister Vic Toews. Appointed in 2007 and 2010 as Manitoba chairwoman.Jason Skinner Farm Credit Canada Donor ($525), appointed in 2009 to the Board of Directors.Jay Josefo National Research Council (NRC) Donor ($250), appointed in 2009.Jayne Claridge Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($800), appointed in 2009.Jean-Claude Cormier Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees President of New Brunswick PC riding association in Dieppe Centre-Lewisville, appointed in 2010.Jean-Francois Beland National Gallery of Canada Former PMO Policy Advisor, appointed in 2009.Jean-Francois Emond Quebec Superior Court Donor ($580.57), appointed pusine judge for Quebec in 2009.Jean-Guy Bonneau Saguenay Port Authority Conservative donor ($300), appointed in 2010Jean-Martin Masse VIA Rail Conservative youth organizer appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Jean-Paul Ouellette New Brunswick Court Conservative donor, appointed a family court judge in 2008.Jean Dube Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former PC MP (1997-2000), appointed in 2007.Jean Dube National Parole Board Former PC MP (1997-2000), New Brunswick PC MLA, appointed to Atlantic division in 2009.Jean Martel Business Development Bank of Canada Donor ($500), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Jeanne Foster Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former secretary of the Kitchener-Waterloo riding association, appointed to the Kitchener board in 2007.Jeffrey Keefe Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed before 2009.Jeffrey Leard Payments in Lieu of Taxes Dispute Advisory Panel Conservative donor ($220), appointed in 2010Jeffrey Steiner Export Development Canada "Longtime Conservative" appointed to the Board of Directors in 2010.Jennifer Lynch Canadian Human Rights Commission Chief of staff to former PC leader Joe Clark, appointed as Chief Commissioner in 2007.Jennifer Tanton Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1000), appointed in 2008Jeremy Adams Toronto Port Authority Former Jim Flaherty campaign manager, appointed to Port Authority Board of Directors in 2009.Jerry Lampert British Columbia Treaty Commission Former PC Party National Director, appointed in 2009.Jessica Ann Bergen Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Attacked Paul Martin government in Prince George newspaper; Conservative party member; appointed in 2007.Jim Dinning Export Development Bank of Canada Dinning was an Alberta Conservative MLA and leadership contestant between the 1980s and 2006. He earned this position in 2007 and was reappointed as Chairman in 2011.James "Jim" Edwards Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Mulroney MP and Campbell Cabinet minister, appointed to NSERC in 2008 and 2011.Jim Silye National Museum of Science and Technology Former Reform MP, appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2010.Joanne Blanchard Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($400), appointed in 2009.Joanne Cowan-McGuigan Veterans Review and Appeal Board Conservative donor ($550), appointed in 2010.Jocelyne Cote-O'Hara RCMP Reform Implementation Council Donor ($400), appointed special adviser to the Public Safety Minister in 2009.Jocelyne Senecal Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($1330), appointed to Montreal office in 2009Jocelyn Geoffroy Quebec Superior Court Both Conservative and Liberal donor, though most recently Conservative (2006) before her appointment in 2008.Joe Comuzzi International Joint Commission Former Conservative MP, appointed Canadian Commissioner in 2009.Joe Spina Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Ontario PC MPP, appointed in 2009.John A. MacNaughton Business Development Bank of Canada Conservative donor ($2100), former Progressive Conservative Association secretary, appointed to the BDC board in 2008.John Brinkerhoff Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1250), appointed in 2009.John Buddy Wiens Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor to Portage-Lisgar riding association, appointed to be chairman for Manitoba in 2010.John Carman McClelland Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal 2007 Ontario PC candidate, appointed in 2009.John Crosbie Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland Former Mulroney Cabinet minister. Appointed to his office in 2008.John Cyr Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($500), appointed in 2008John D. Wallace Senator 2006 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2008John Eberhard Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor ($489.45), appointed in 2010.John Firth Canada Revenue Agency Conservative campaign worker, appointed to the Board of Management in 2009.John Hamm Assisted Human Reproduction Canada Progressive Conservative premier of Nova Scotia from 1999 to 2006, named AHRC chairman in 2007.John Hanson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($600), appointed in 2009.John Hazen Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Identified as a Conservative when appointed in 2008John Hillyard Canada Development Investment Corporation Donor ($500), appointed director in 2009.John Huggins Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former PC candidate, appointed in 2007.John Huggins Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Timmins-James Bay riding association chairman, appointed in 2010.John K. Bell Royal Canadian Mint Ran for the Liberals in 1990, but supported MP Gary Goodyear as of 2009. One month after he made headlines for attacking Michael Ignatieff, he was appointed to the RCM Board of Directors.John Kivlichan Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($500), appointed to Toronto office in 2009John Larlee Veterans Review and Appeal Board Donor ($1600), appointed in 2009.John Martel Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Ontario PC candidate, named chairman of the board in Windsor in 2007.John Martel Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($2000), Mulroney-era PC candidate, appointed in 2009.John McDermot Ontario Court of Appeal Donor for Barrie riding association, appointed to judge ex officio in 2010.John Middlebro Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Progressive Conservative candidate, appointed in 2010.John Middlebro Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal 1997 PC candidate for Grey-Bruce, appointed in 2007.John Oostrom Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Mulroney-era PC MP, appointed chairman for Toronto in 2008.John Prato Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada Former Ontario PC fundraiser, appointed Consul-General to New York in 2010.John R. Campbell Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($750), appointed in 2009.John Rooney Export Development Canada Donor ($5710), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.John V. Hachey National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Conservative candidate in 1997, appointed to board of directors.John Weissenberger Canadian Foundation for Innovation Harper friend and chief of staff for minister Diane Finley, appointed in 2008 to the Board of Directors of CFI.John Weissenberger Canada Foundation for Innovation Managed Stephen Harper's 1993 campaign, former chief of staff to minister Diane Finley, appointed in 2009.Josef Fogarassy Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative candidate in Vancouver Centre in 2006, appointed in 2010.Joseph L. Rotman Canada Council for the Arts Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Joseph Wamback Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees PC candidate in 2000, appointed in 2009.Joy Dirks Citizenship and Immigration Canada Conservative donor ($372.84), appointed citizenship judgeJudith Bobka Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Stormont-Dundas Ontario PC riding association official (federal riding of Guy Lauzon), appointed in 2010.Judith Crockford Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1435), appointed in 2009.Judith Seidman Senator Harper's Quebec campaign co-chair in 2003, appointed in 2009.Judy Dreeshen Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative campaign worker, appointed in 2009.Julia Foster National Arts Centre Conservative donor ($4211.91), appointed in 2010.Julie-Anne Miller Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former President of Alliance riding association and staff for Guy Lauzon, appointed in 2009.Karen Oldfield Advisory Council on National Security Chief of Staff for former Nova Scotia PC premier John Hamm, appointed in 2009.Katrine Giroux International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development Niece of former Tory premier Bernard Lord, recommended by him for the appointment in 2011.Keith Heming National Parole Board Conservative donor ($1399), appointed in 2010.Keith Montgomery Competition Tribunal 2004 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2009.Keith Poulson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Managed Brian Pallister leadership campaign in 1998, appointed in 2006 and re-appointed in 2009.Kelley Sherwood Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Reform activist, appointed in 2009.Kellie Leitch Advisor to the Minister of Health Conservative donor and Ontario campaign co-chair, appointed as adviser on healthy children to Health Minister Tony Clement in 2007. Ran as a Conservative candidate in 2011.Kellie Leitch (2) National Research Council (NRC) Appointed in 2008. Ran as a Conservative candidate in 2011.Kelvin K. Ogilvie Senator Donor ($500), appointed in 2009.Kendall Dolliver Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal "Good friend" of MP Guy Lauzon, appointed in 2010.Ken James Blue Water Bridge Authority Former Conservative MP for Sarnia-Lambton; appointed to board in 2006, re-appointed chairman in 2010.Kenneth Atkinson Immigration and Refugee Board Former PC MP, appointed to the Toronto office in 2009.Kenneth Pearson Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($525), appointed in 2010Kerry-Lynne Findlay Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Former Conservative candidate, running again in Vancouver in 2011. Appointed in 2006.Kerry Morash National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Former Nova Scotia PC MLA, appointed in 2007.Kevin MacAdam Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) Former Binns government minister in PEI who worked for minister Peter MacKay in Ottawa. An ACOA Director-General as of 2010, taking a $110 000-a-year job he will be taking two years learning French (on the public dime) in order to do.Kevin Smith Canada Foundation for Innovation Conservative donor ($3189.09), appointed in 2010.Ki Kit Li Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Ontario PC candidate in 2007. Appointed to the CPP board the following year.Kimberley Bozak National Arts Centre Donated to Tim Hudak leadership campaign ($1500). Appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2011.Kirk Macrae Royal Canadian Mint On RCM Board of Directors since 2007. Campaigned for Jamie Baillie in Nova Scotia PC leadership race, which Baillie won.Kirk Sisson Alberta Court Member of MP Bob Mills's Red Deer riding association, appointed a judge in 2006.Lance Bryant Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Ontario PC candidate, appointed in 2008Laura Wicks Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($1450), appointed in 2008Laurence Tetrault Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Appointed as chairman for Manitoba in 2008. Became a provincial PC candidate in 2011.Lawrence O'Neil Nova Scotia Supreme Court Conservative MP during Mulroney government, appointed family judge in early 2011.Leah Lawrence National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Alberta PC candidate in 2008, appointed the following year.Leo Doiron Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal New Brunswick PC candidate, appointed as the member for Bathurst in 2008.Leo Housakos Senator 2000 Alliance candidate, appointed in 2008Leo Ledohowski Bank of Canada Identified as an associate of public safety minister Vic Toews. Appointed in 2008.Leonard Cusack Historic Sites and Monuments Board Former PEI PC candidate, appointed in 2009.Leon Courville Public Sector Pension Investment Board Chief strategist for ADQ leader Mario Dumont, appointed in 2007.Leroy Legere Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Nova Scotia Progressive-Conservative minister, appointed in 2010Les Cannam Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) Donates $1000 per year, appointed to CDIC board.Lily Durepos Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Donated $250 in 2010; ACOA board member.Linda Carvery Citizenship and Immigration Canada Former Nova Scotia Progressive-Conservative candidate (1999, 2003) appointed in 2010.Linda Frum Sokolowski Senator Donor ($8530), fundraiser host, appointed in 2009.Linda Hohol Export Development Canada Conservative donor ($1000 per year), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2010.Linda Lennon National Parole Board Former Ontario PC candidate, appointed in 2011.Lise Beland Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009.Liza Maheu National Gallery of Canada Donor ($1500), appointed to Board of Trustees in 2009.Lois Hoegg Newfoundland Court of Appeal Conservative donor ($1500) appointed in 2010Lorna Reid Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Alliance donor ($1781), appointed in 2009.Lorne Crawford Thunder Bay Port Authority Donor ($207.24), appointed in 2009.Lorne Curtis Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009Lorne Mayencourt Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees 2008 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2009.Lorne Staley Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($1000), appointed in 2009.Lorne Wheeler Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada Senior policy adviser to the opposition leader and then to the Conservative fisheries minister in 2006-2007; appointed to the Historic Board in 2008.Louis-Philippe McGraw National Parole Board Former New Brunswick PC MLA, appointed as vice-chairman in 2008.Louise Harris National Parole Board Chief of staff to Ontario PC minister Frank Klees, appointed in 2010.Louise Pelletier Canada Lands Company Donor ($425), appointed as a director in 2009.Louis Johnson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($3465), appointed in 2009.Loyola Hearn Foreign Affairs and International Trade Former Conservative MP, appointed ambassador to Ireland in 2010.Loyola Sullivan Ambassador for Fisheries Conservation Former Newfoundland PC leader and Cabinet minister, appointed in 2009.Luba Fedorkiw Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative candidate in Winnipeg in Mulroney era, appointed in 2008Luc Barrick Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal 2000 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2008Luc Moreau Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($455) appointed in 2008Lyall Knott International Joint Commission Donor ($4388.34), appointed Canadian chairman in 2009.Lyn Chow Canadian Race Relations Foundation Donor ($360), appointed in 2009.Lyne Demers Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Worked in the party whip's office during the Harris government in Ontario. Appointed in 2008.Lynn Faulder Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($400), appointed in 2009.Malcolm Stockton Veterans Review and Appeal Board Donor ($800), appointed in 2009.Marc Courtois Canada Post Brother of Conservative Senator Nicole Eaton. Appointed chairman of the Board of Directors in 2007.Marc Guignard Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Co-chair of the PC New Brunswick Fund. Appointed as a part-time member in 2008.Marc Nadeau Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2008 Conservative candidate, appointed as citizenship judge in 2009.Marco Navarro-Genie International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development Donated to Canadian Alliance, appointed to Board of Directors in 2009. Now associated with the Frontier Centre for Public Policy.Marc Patrone Canadian Radio-Television Communications Commission (CRTC) Declared candidate in 2005 (did not run), appointed to CRTC in 2008.Margaret Lefebvre National Research Council (NRC) Donor ($3175), appointed in 2009.Margot Ballagh Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($235), appointed in 2009.Marie-France Pelletier National Parole Board Former staff to New Brunswick PC premier Bernard Lord, appointed as Executive Vice-Chairwoman in 2009.Mario Charpentier Export Development Canada ADQ insider, appointed to the EDC Board of Directors in 2007.Mark McQueen Toronto Port Authority Conservative Party member and former assistant in the Mulroney Prime Minister's Office. Appointed as a director in 2007.Mark Muise Canadian Museum of Nature Former Nova Scotia PC MLA. Appointed in 2008 to the Board of Trustees.Mark Mullins Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Fraser Institute economist who advised the PC and Alliance parties; appointed in 2009.Mark Parent National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Former Nova Scotia Progressive Conservative MLA (1999-2009) and Cabinet minister (2006-2009)Marleen Tasse Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($500), appointed in 2008Marlene Hogarth Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($1147) to PC Party, appointed in 2009.Marlie Oden Telefilm Canada 2007 director of the Vancouver-Quadra Conservative riding association, appointed in 2008.Marni Larkin Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative campaign organizer in Manitoba, appointed in 2006.Martin Dallaire Quebec Superior Court Donor ($2500), appointed judge for Chicoutimi in 2009.Martin Loveless National Seniors Council Member of Alliance merger committee in 2004. Appointed in 2007.Martin S. James Ontario Superior Court Donor ($1219.20), appointed judge in 2009.Mary-Lynn Charlton National Film Board (NFB) Aide to former Saskatchewan PC Cabinet minister Lorne Hepworth, appointed in 2007 and re-appointed in 2011.Mary Fickel Buffalo and Port Erie Public Bridge Authority Donor ($1100), appointed in 2009.Mary Jean Dirksen Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor, appointed in 2010.Mary McNeil Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) From a Conservative family. Named to the CBC Board of Directors in 2008 but stepped down to run as a nominee for the Conservative candidacy in a Vancouver riding.Mary Sandra Gulliver Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor ($340), appointed in 2010.Maurice Picard Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal 2006 New Brunswick PC candidate, appointed in 2009.Maxime Langlois Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Quebec PC candidate, appointed in 2006.Maxim Jean-Louis Canada Polar Commission Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2010.Melvin Hawkrigg Hamilton Port Authority Conservative donor ($1020), appointed in 2010.Merry Hallsor Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Identified as a "longtime Conservative" in 2007 upon her appointment. Mother of Bruce Hallsor, a 2000 Alliance candidate.Michael Burge Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees High-profile provincial PC member in the 1990s; appointed in 2010.Michael Crosbie St. John's Port Authority Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2010.Michael Fortier Senator Former Alliance candidate, Harper leadership campaign co-chair in 2003, and national campaign co-chair in 2006. Appointed to the Senate in 2006.Michael J. Audain National Gallery of Canada Donor ($4500), appointed to Board of Trustees in 2009.Michael L. MacDonald Senator Conservative Party Vice-President, appointed in 2008Michael Meighen Roosevelt Campobello International Park Commission Conservative senator, appointed in 2007.Michael O'Brien Bank of Canada Donor ($352.92), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009Michael Parayeski Ontario Superior Court Donor ($1000), appointed judge in 2009.Michael Pratt Great Lakes Pilotage Authority Conservative donor ($700), appointed in 2010Michael Rohrer Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Ontario PC candidate and vocal supporter of PC-Alliance unification in 2003. Appointed to the tribunal in 2008.Michel Byczak Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($1000), appointed to the Montreal office in 2009.Michel Doyon Payments in Lieu of Taxes Advisory Panel Mulroney-era PC candidate, appointed as chairman of the panel in 2008.Michel Girouard Quebec Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed to the court of Abitibi, Rouyn-Noranda and Temiscamingue, in 2010.Micheline Lavoie-Cote Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2010.Michel Larose Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Donor ($200), appointed in 2009.Michel Morin Canadian Radio-Television Communications Commission (CRTC) Quebec PC MNA until he left provincial politics in 2007, and was appointed the same year to the CRTC.Michel Rivard Senator Alliance candidate, appointed in 2008Mike Burns Atomic Energy of Canada BC Conservative fundraiser, appointed in 2006 to the Board of Directors.Mike Shaikh Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) Former director of the Calgary-Lougheed riding association. Appointed to the CATSA Board of Directors in 2008.Mildred Dover National Parole Board Former PEI PC Cabinet minister, appointed to Atlantic division in 2009.Monte Solberg International Development Research Centre Former Harper Cabinet minister, appointed to the Board of Governors in 20093Murdoch MacKay Canadian Grain Commission Conservative donor, appointed in 2010.Myles Bourke Canada Revenue Agency Donor ($300), appointed to the Board of Management in 2009.Nada Borden Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Chief financial officer for Newfoundland PC premier Danny Williams in 2001. Appointed chairwoman for Corner Brook in 2007.Nada Borden Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees President of Humber-St Barbe-Baie Verte riding association, appointed in 2010.Nancy E. McKay Belledune Port Authority Donor ($400), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009.Nancy Greene Raine Senator Donor ($250), appointed in 2008Neal Caldwell Saskatchewan Court of Appeal Conservative donor ($2465), appointed in 2010Neil LeBlanc Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada Former Nova Scotia PC finance minister, appointed in 2006.Neil Nawaz Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor to Ajax-Pickering riding association, appointed in 2011.Nestor Prisco Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1000), appointed in 2008Nicholas Kaufman Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2007.Nicholas Offord Canadian Museum of Nature Former Ontario PC Eves government advisor who sits on the board of directors of the Manning Centre. Appointed in 2010 as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Trustees.Nick Careen Marine Atlantic Former Newfoundland PC MLA, appointed in 2007 to the Board of Directors.Nick Katalifos Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($2000), appointed in 2009.Nick Scaravelli Nova Scotia Court of Appeal Conservative donor, appointed in 2006Nicole Eaton Senator Donor ($14 614), appointed 2008Norman Betts Export Development Canada Donor (1859), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Normand Allaire Citizenship and Immigration Canada Donor ($3975), appointed a citizenship judge in 2009.Normand Forest Immigration and Refugee Board Senior policy advisor to labour minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn in 2006; appointed to Board in 2011.Normand Morin Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former ADQ candidate, appointed as Chairman for Quebec in 2011.Norman Halldorson Canada Revenue Agency Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Management in 2008.Pasquale Fiorino Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($150), appointed to Toronto office in 2009.Pat Binns Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada Former Progressive Conservative premier of PEI, appointed Consul-General in Boston in 2010.Pat Binns Foreign Affairs and International Trade Former PEI PC premier, appointed ambassador to Ireland in 2007.Pat Mella Canada Revenue Agency Former PEI PC opposition leader. Appointed to the Board of Management in 2006.Patricia Edge National Seniors Council Reform activist and Conservative donor ($1850) appointed in 2010.Patricia Gerhardi Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former member of the Cariboo-Prince George Conservative riding association. Appointed as a B.C. chairwoman in 2008.Patricia Haasbeek National Parole Board Wife of a former adviser to justice minister Vic Towes, appointed in 2007.Patricia Whiting Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($525), appointed in 2010Patrick Dowd Transportation Appeal Tribunal Conservative donor ($250), appointed in 2010Patrick Dunn Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Nova Scotia PC Cabinet minister, appointed in 2009.Patrick Murray Nova Scotia Supreme Court Conservative donor ($500) appointed judge in 2010.Patrick O'Neil Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Ontario PC candidate, appointed in 2009Paul Baay National Gallery of Canada Donor ($1425), appointed to Board of Trustees in 2009.Paul Boothe Canada School of Public Service Advised Alberta PC government's Mazankowski Commission on healthcare; appointed to Board of Governors in 2011.Paul Crampton Federal Court of Canada Donor ($350), appointed judge in 2009.Paul Demers Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Ontario PC candidate, appointed in 2007 as chairman for Sudbury.Paul G. Smith VIA Rail Donor ($3825), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Pauline Browes National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Former Mulroney Cabinet minister and candidate in 2006, appointed to the Board of Directors.Paul Jeffrey Alberta Court Donor ($550), appointed judge in 2009.Paul Mayer Quebec Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed as a puisne judge for the Montreal district in 2008.Paul Schnabel Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($245), appointed in 2009.Percy Mockler Senator Former New Brunswick PC cabinet minister, appointed in 2008Perle Bouchard Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Party nominee in Brome-Missisquoi in 2008Peter Abrametz Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor ($1300), appointed in 2007, reappointed in 2010.Peter Annis Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor ($2532.25) and Progressive Conservative candidate in 1997, appointed in 2010.Peter Annis (2) Canadian Artists and Producers Professional Relations Tribunal Conservative donor ($2532.25) and Progressive Conservative candidate in 1997, appointed in 2007.Peter Armstrong Public Private Partnerships Canada Donor ($2200), appointed to the P3 Canada Board of Directors in 2009.Peter Burgener National Capital Commission Donor ($7200), appointed in 2009.Peter G. Gaulton Saint John Port Authority Conservative donor, appointed a port director in 2008.Peter Lauwers Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Peter McCreath Canadian Human Rights Commission Mulroney-era Parliamentary secretary and a Cambell Cabinet minister, appointed to the CHRC board of directors in March 2011.Peter Menzies Canada Radio-Television Communications Commission (CRTC) Managed Conservative training group according to 2009 reports, appointed that year.Peter Richardson-Bryson Nova Scotia Supreme Court Donor ($6500), appointed as judge in 2009.Peter Senchuk Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($500), appointed in 2009.Peter Stastny Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees 2004 Conservative candidate, appointed in 2009.Philip Gaynor Citizenship and Immigration Canada Associated with Oshawa-Whitby riding association (riding of finance minister Jim Flaherty). Appointed citizenship judge, 2006.Philip Ponting Canada Council for the Arts Donor ($2250), appointed in 2009.Phyllis Kobasiuk Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($800), appointed in 2008Pierre Blais Federal Court of Appeal Former Mulroney Cabinet minister, appointed chief justice in 2009.Pierre Cadieux National Parole Board Former Mulroney Cabinet minister, appointed as a full-time member in 2007.Pierre Daigle Canadian Forces Ombudsman Donor ($425), appointed in 2009.Pierre Gingras Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Campaign assistant for Conservative candidate Claude Carignan in 2008, appointed in February 2011 to Board of Directors.Pierre Lavallee Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor, appointed to the board for Rouyn-Noranda in 2006.Pierre Nollet Quebec Superior Court Conservative donor ($600), appointed puisne judge for Montreal in 2010Pierre Rocque Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Early friend of Brian Mulroney. Appointed as chairman for Quebec in 2007.R. Dan Cornell Ontario Superior Court 2003 Alliance candidate and 2004 Conservative nominee, appointed in 2009.R. Gary Robinson International Pacific Halibut Commission Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Ralph Ottenbreit Saskatchewan Court Former lawyer for the Saskatchewan Party and Saskatchewan PC party, appointed in 2007 as a judge.Raminder Gill Citizenship and Immigration Canada Conservative candidate, appointed as citizenship judge in 2009.Randy Dewell Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Nova Scotia PC candidate and riding association president, appointed in 2007.Raymond Andrews Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization Donor ($850), appointed in 2009 as Canadian Representative to the General Council.Raymond Castelli Prince Rupert Port Authority Donor ($4385), appointed in 2009.Raymond Chartre Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($303.36), appointed in 2009.Raymond Kaduck Canadian Transportation Agency Donor ($1250), appointed in 2009.Raymond Kindiak Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($950), appointed in 2009.Rejean Belanger Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Donor to Hull-Aylmer riding association, appointed in 2007.Renaud Dutil National Parole Board Donor ($300), appointed to Quebec division in 2009.Renee Dussault Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($500) appointed in 2010Renee Giroux Citizenship and Immigration Canada Spouse of a Conservative candidate, appointed citizenship judge in 2009.Richard Belisle Great Lakes Pilotage Authority 2004 Conservative candidate, 2000 Alliance candidate, appointed in 2009.Richard Bell New Brunswick Court New Brunswick campaign co-chair for the Harper leadership campaign in 2004. Appointed a judge in 2006.Richard Bragdon National Council of Welfare Candidate for Conservative Party National Council in 2005; appointed in 2011.Richard Hornung Canada Industrial Relations Board Conservative donor ($750), appointed in 2010.Richard LeBlanc Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 New Brunswick PC MLA from 1999-2010, after which he was appointed to the museum's Board of Trustees.Richard Letourneau Saguenay Port Authority Donor ($1203.34), appointed in 2009.Richard Margesson Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Ontario PC donor, appointed in 2009.Richard Neufeld Senator BC Liberal Cabinet minister known to support federal ConservativesRichard Prokopanko National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Social Credit aide in the 1980s, subsequently Mulroney political assistant, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2007.Richard Woodfield Veterans Review and Appeal Board Conservative activist in 2007, appointed in 2009.Rick Byers Public-Private Partnerships Canada Ontario PC candidate in 2007 and aide to a Mulroney Cabinet minister. Appointed to the P3 Canada Board of Directors in 2010.Rick Leroy Ontario Superior Court Donor ($800), appointed judge in 2009.Rick Perkins Business Development Bank of Canada PC candidate in 1997, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Robbie Grossman Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Vice-President of St. Paul's PC riding association, appointed in 2009.Robert Cooling Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Official agent for Conservative candidate Charles Doucet in 2006, and allegedly participated in the In and Out money laundering scheme. Appointed to the Moncton board in 2006.Robert Dewar Manitoba Court Donor ($250), appointed in 2009 as judge.Robert E. Gray Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor ($4825.25), appointed in 2008Robert Emigh Transportation Appeal Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Robert Giroux Public Service Staffing Tribunal Former Canadian Alliance candidate, appointed to the tribunal as a temporary member in 2008.Robert Hogan Tax Court of Canada Conservative donor, appointed a tax judge in 2008.Robert MacArthur Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($297), appointed in 2009.Robert Mainville Federal Court of Appeal Donor ($6950), appointed judge in 2009.Robert Munroe Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation Donor ($550), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Robert Munroe Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Donated during 2004 and 2008 elections; hired as ACOA board member.Robert Pennock Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($300), Mulroney-era PC MP, appointed in 2006 and reappointed in 2009.Robert Pletch Canada Post Conservative donor in 2006. Appointed to the Board of Directors in 2007.Robert Poirier Toronto Port Authority Conservative fundraiser, appointed in 2009.Robert Presser Defence Construction Canada Ltd Former PC candidate, appointed as chairman of the Board of Directors in 2008.Robert Sopuck National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Appointed to NRTEE in 2007. Ran in a by-election in 2010 and elected as a Conservative MP.Robin Baird Canadian Human Rights Commission Conservative candidate in 2006, appointed in 2011.Rocco Vacca Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority Donor ($360), appointed in 2009.Roch A. Fournier Canadian Human Rights Commission Donor to Sherbrooke riding association, appointed in 2009.Rodney MacDonald Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board Former Progressive Conservative premier, appointed in 2010.Roger Beaulieu Public Service Labour Relations Board Mulroney-era Conservative fundraiser, appointed in 2007.Roger Cumming Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($600), appointed in 2009.Roger Demers Business Development Bank of Canada Donor ($1200), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Roger Demers (2) Laurentian Pilotage Authority Conservative donor, appointed in 2007.Roger N. Clarke Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($725), appointed in 2009.Ronald Barriault Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission Former New Brunswick PC candidate, appointed to the commission in 2007.Ronald Stevens Alberta Court Former Alberta PC Cabinet minister, appointed judge in 2009.Ron Blackie Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees 2000 PC candidate. Appointed to the Hamilton board in 2007.Ron Hierath Farm Credit Canada Former Alberta PC MLA, appointed in 2009.Rose-May Poirier Senator Former New Brunswick PC Cabinet minister, appointed in 2009.Rose Andrachuk Immigration and Refugee Board Ontario PC candidate in 2003, appointed in 2011.Rosemary Vodrey Canada Council for the Arts Former Manitoba PC Cabinet minister, appointed in 2009.Roy B. Norton Foreign Affairs and International Trade Legislative assistant to several Trudea-era Conservative MPs and briefly a senior foreign affairs adviser in the Clark government. Appointed as Consul-General to Detroit in 2010.Salma Ataullahjan Senator Ran for Conservative Party in Toronto in 2008. Appointed by Harper in 2010.Sean Morley Toronto Port Authority Spent four years as an advisor in the Ontario PC Mike Harris government. Appointed in 2008 and 2011.Sean Morley Toronto Port Authority Worked for then-Ontario PC minister Jim Flaherty, later Harper's finance minister, before being appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Shane Parker Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative candidate in 2008, appointed in 2010.Shane Perlmutter Court of Manitoba Donated the maximum $1100 in 2009; now a judge as of early 2011.Shane Roherty Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Member of the board of directors of the Prince Edward-Hastings riding association in 2006, appointed as chairman for Kingston in 2007.Sharon Hayes Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Reform MP during the Chretien era; appointed in 2006.Sharon Piper Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Head of Conservative Cabinet minister Jim Flaherty's nomination committee in Oshawa-Whitby. Appointed in 2006 to the Toronto board.Sharon White Farm Credit Canada Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Sheldon Lanchbery Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($250), appointed in 2009.Shirley McClellan Defence Construction Canada Ltd Former Alberta PC Cabinet minister, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Sian Matthews Canada Post Official Agent for Stephen Harper in 1993, Conservative donor ($3750), appointed to Board of Directors in 2010Sonia Rodrigue Immigration and Refugee Board Donor ($800), appointed to Montreal office in 2009Stan Cook Marine Atlantic Donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2006 and reappointed in 2009.Stanley Schumacher Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former PC MP and Alberta Conservative MLA, former fundraiser for Alberta PC minister and leadership candidate Ted Morton. Appointed in 2006.Stephen Campbell Saint John Port Authority Donor ($500), appointed a director in 2009.Stephen Glithero Ontario Superior Court Former Cambridge PC riding association, appointed judge by Mulroney and chief justice in 2006.Stephen Greene Senator Former Preston Manning chief of staff, appointed in 2008Stephen Probyn Canada Foundation for Sustainable Development Technology PC candidate in 1997 federal election. Appointed as chairman of the Board of Directors in 2007.Stephen Rogers Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Conservative candidate in 2004 and 2006, appointed in 2009.Steven Howarth Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($700), appointed in 2009.Steven Katkin Public Service Labour Relations Board Conservative donor ($425), appointed in 2010Stewart McInnes Canada Post Donor ($3942.02), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.Stuart Busse Payments in Lieu of Taxes Dispute Advisory Panel Donor ($540), appointed in 2008Stuart Murray Canadian Museum for Human Rights Former Manitoba Conservative leader, appointed as director in 2009.Stuart "Bud" Smith Prince Rupert Port Authority Former Social Credit minister, appointed in 2006.Susan McArthur Canada Revenue Agency Donor ($9500), appointed to the Board of Management in 2009.Susanne Friedl Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Member of the board of Harper science minister Gary Goodyear's Cambridge riding association in 2005. Appointed in 2008.Suzanne Chartrand National Parole Board Conservative candidate in 2008, appointed in 2010.Suzanne Dery Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($100), appointed in 2009.Suzanne Fortin-Duplessis Senator Mulroney-era PC MP, appointed in 2008T. Richard Turner Vancouver Fraser Port Authority Donor ($2000), appointed in 2009 as a director.Terence "Chick" Cholock Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Active in Newfoundland PC politics. Appointed as chairman of the board for Newfoundland in 2007.Terrence Leier Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Saskatchewan PC official agentTerrence Morrison New Brunswick Court Donor ($500), appointed Judge in 2008Terry Geddes Great Lakes Pilotage Authority Supported Helena Guergis in 2006, appointed in 2009.Thomas Cryer Canada Post When he was appointed to the Post's Board of Directors in 2007, Cryer was also the CEO of the Conservative Party's official auditor, Deloitte & Touche.Thomas Deblois Atlantic Canada Opportunities Board Ran for Conservatives in Charlottetown in 2006 and 2008. Now an ACOA board member.Thomas Jarmyn Veterans Review and Appeal Board Donor ($1125), appointed in 2009.Thomas McEwen Ontario Superior Court Donor ($947.50), appointed judge in 2009.Timothy Haig National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Company donated $2000 to Conservatives. Appointed in 2009.Timothy Keene Saskatchewan Court Donor ($1400), appointed in 2009.Tina Positano Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Campaign worker and former Ontario PC candidate, appointed in 2008Tom Hockin International Monetary Fund Former Mulroney Cabinet minister, appointed candidate for the Canadian-Caribbean Executive Director in 2009.Tom Long Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Long's Egon Zhender International HR firm handled the hiring of a new CBC news director in 2007.Tom Pentefountas Canadian Radio-Television Communications Commission (CRTC) A former ADQ politician who got his job in early 2011 through the admitted assistance of a Harper-appointed Senator, Leo Housakos, despite having no experience in communications and not being on the shortlist of applicants.Tracey DeWare Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative Party worker, appointed in 2009.Troy Myers Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal 2006 Nova Scotia PC candidate, appointed in 2009.Tung Chan Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada Former vice-president of the Richmond PC riding association, appointed in 2006.Tung Chan Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 Conservative and NPA member active in Vancouver politics and the Richmond PC riding assoication, appointed in 2010 to the Board of Trustees.Tyler Shandro National Parole Board Conservative donor ($1015) and Alberta Progressive Conservative activist, appointed in 2010.Valerie Hazlett Parker Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($1450), appointed in 2009.Vikram Khurana Asia-Pacific Foundation Former Tony Clement business partner, Conservative donor ($3600), appointed in 2009.Vim Kochhar Senator Mulroney-era PC leadership contestant, appointed in 2009.Vim Kochhar (2) Canadian Museum for Human Rights Mulroney-era PC leadership contestant, appointed to the Advisory Committee in 2007.Virginia McLaughlin National Museum of Science and Technology Donor ($1275), appointed in 2009.Vivian Lougheed Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Daughter-in-law of former Alberta PC premier Peter Lougheed, appointed in 2006.W.A. Sam Shaw Standards Council of Canada Donor to Edmonton riding associations. Appointed Vice-Chairman of the Council in 2011.Walter Paszowski Prince Rupert Port Authority Former Alberta PC Cabinet minister, appointed in 2007.Walter Viner Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor ($250), appointed in 2009.Wesley Becker Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($944), appointed in 2010Wilfred Arsenault Veterans Review and Appeal Board 2007 Conservative nominee, former PEI PC MLA, appointed in 2009.William A. Black Bank of Canada Donor ($1695), appointed to Board of Directors in 2009.William Burnett Manitoba Court Donor ($3250), appointed in 2009 as judge.William Burnett Court of Manitoba Former co-chair of the PC Manitoba Fund and Conservative donor ($3250), appointed Associate Chief Justice in early 2011.William Forrestall Canadian Cultural Property Export Review Board New Brunswick PC candidate in 2006, gained Conservative nomination in 2007; appointed as a commissioner in 2011.William McMackin Public Private Partnerships Canada Donor ($300), appointed to the P3 Canada Board of Directors in 2009.William McMurray Canada Industrial Relations Board Donor ($1100), appointed Vice-Chairman in 2009William R. Johnston Manitoba Court Donor ($3380), appointed to family court in 2009.William Tufnell National Parole Board Donor ($250 in 2009), appointed to the board and then to Vice-Chairman for Ontario in 2011.William Wheatley VIA Rail Donor ($2400), appointed to the Board of Directors in 2009.William Wheatley VIA Rail Chief of staff to former Saskatchewan Cabinet minister Gary Lane, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2007.Willie Littlechild Canadian Museum for Human Rights Mulroney-era PC MP, appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2008.Wilson Wiseman Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Former Newfoundland PC candidate, appointed in 2008.Yonah Martin Senator Conservative candidate in 2008 election, appointed same yearYuri Shymko Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Former Trudeau-era PC MP and Ontario MPP, appointed in 2010.Yvan Gregoire Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor ($400) appointed in 2010.Yves Laberge Canadian Museum for Human Rights 2006 Conservative candidate, appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2008.Yves Poirier Quebec Superior Court Donor ($1100), appointed to Montreal district as puisne judge in 2009.Zoe Addington Canada School of Energy and Environment Industry minister Tony Clement's aide until her appointment in 2009.Zoel R. Dionne New Brunswick Court Conservative donor, appointed as a trial judge in 2008.Alan Fenton Payments in Lieu of Taxes Advisory Panel Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Catherine Hodder Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed for St. John's in 2008.Lawrence "Larry" Kroeker Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed for St. Catharine's in 2008.Timothy Denton Canadian Radio-Television Communications Commission (CRTC) Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Robert Rushowy Immigration and Refugee Board Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.G.R. "Randy" Barber National Parole Board Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.John H. Morrison Veterans Review and Appeal Board Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Paul M. Tellier Judicial Compensation and Benefits Commission Conservative donor, appointed in 2007.John Scott Canadian Transportation Agency Conservative donor, appointed as vice-chairman in 2007.Bruce Wright Oshawa Harbour Commission PC candidate in 2000, appointed as a commissioner in 2007.Catherine Smith Canada Foundation for Sustainable Development Technology Conservative donor, appointed in 2007 to the Board of Directors.B. Richard Bell (2) New Brunswick Court of Appeal Conservative donor, appointed to the Court of Appeal in 2007.Douglas N. Abra Manitoba Court Conservative donor, appointed as a judge in 2007.James A. "Jim" Millar Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation Conservative donor, appointed in 2007 to the Board of Directors.Robert Page National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Conservative donor, appointed in 2007.Valerie Hazlett Parker Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2007.Maureen Molot Canada School of Public Service Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Arthur Porter Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Murray Dodds National Parole Board Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Cheryl Barker Public Sector Pension Investment Board Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.B. Anne Perry National Museum of Science and Technology Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2006.Lloyd Fogler Canada Lands Company Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2007.James W. Ramsay Downsview Park Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2007.Drew Gunsolus Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed as a judge in 2007.Kevin J. Gaudet Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed for Toronto in 2006.Thomas S. Fleming Canadian Broiler Hatching Egg Marketing Agency Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Brien Benoit Patented Medicine Prices Review Board Conservative donor, appointed chairman of the board in 2006.Charlie Pingle Windsor Port Authority Identified as a Conservative appointee by the Windsor Star following his appointment in 2006.Hosran Khosrowshahi Canada Post Fraser Institute director who donated Liberal until defecting in 2006, the same year he was appointed to the Canada Post Board of Directors.Cameron J. Turner Toronto Port Authority Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Brian Coulter Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Eleanor Grennell Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Partner of Conservative donor Herbert J. Grennell. Appointed in 2006.John Morrison Hanson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Louis C. Johnson Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.Robert Harold Johnston Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2006.John K. Koulouras Citizenship and Immigration Canada Conservative donor, appointed as a citizenship judge in 2006.Fredrik Stefan Eaton Canadian Museum of Civilization Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Trustees in 2006.Joel Teal Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation Conservative donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2006.Ernest H. McDonald Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor, appointed as chairman for Brampton, ON, in 2006.John M. Johnston Ontario Superior Court Conservative donor, appointed a judge in 2010.Bernard Funston Canadian Polar Commission Conservative donor, appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors in 2010.Marie-Claude Cossette Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor to the Vaudreil-Soulanges riding association, appointed in 2008.Martine Phaneuf Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor to Westmount-Ville Marie riding association, appointed in 2008.Robert Mullan National Council of Welfare Donor to Kings-Hants riding association, appointed in 2008.Martin Cohos National Capital Commission Donor to Calgary Centre-North riding association, appointed in 2008.Andres Rioux National Capital Commission Donor to Manicouagan riding association, appointed in 2008.Helene Lacroix National Parole Board Sherbrooke riding association donor, appointed in 2008.Ron Profit Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Husband of 2011 Conservative candidate Donna Profit. Appointed in 2008.Steven Shinnie Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Selkirk-Interlake riding association donor, appointed in 2008 for Winnipeg.Ronald V. Colucci Downsview Park Donor to Mississauga South riding association, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Denis Durand Via Rail Donor to Repentigny riding association, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Jean-Denis Pelletier Canadian Transportation Agency Donor to multiple Quebec riding associations, appointed in 2008.William Greenwood Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor to the Niagara Falls Conservative Association, appointed in 2008.Raymond H. Raphael Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Donor to Willowdale riding association, appointed in 2008.George Berg Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor to Medicine Hat riding association, appointed as Chairman for Alberta in 2008.Sylvain Richer Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Sherbrooke riding association donor, appointed as chairperson for Quebec in 2008.John Griffin National Farm Products Council Charlottetown riding association donor, appointed in 2008.John McFarlane Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) Halifax riding association donor, appointed in 2008 to the Board of Directors.Peter Wallace Great Lakes Fishery Commission Toronto Centre riding association donor, appointed in 2008.Robert Kay Canadian Commercial Corporation St. Paul's (Toronto) riding association donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Thomas Sewell Byng Giraud Ridley Terminals Victoria riding association donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Steve Reimnitz Quebec Superior Court Laurier-Ste. Marie riding association donor, appointed as a puisne judge for Montreal in 2008.Rod Seiling Canadian Tourism Commission York-Simcoe riding association donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.Doug Milburn Cape Breton Development Corporation Halifax riding association donor, appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008.B. Gail DeGroot Citizenship and Immigration Canada Windsor West riding association donor, appointed as a citizenship judge in 2008.Marie-Claude Cossette Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Vaudreil-Soulanges riding association donor, appointed as chairwoman for Montreal in 2008.Bill Smirle National Farm Products Council Former member of an Ontario PC riding association. Appointed as chairman of the council in 2008.Marc Rousseau National Film Board Donor to Outremont riding association, appointed in 2008.Stan Bracken-Horrocks Business Development Bank of Canada Member of the Board of Directors of Canfor, the company controlled by industry minister David Emerson. First appointed by Emerson in 2005 (when Emerson was Liberal), then reappointed in 2008 (when Emerson was Conservative).John K. Mitchell Prince Edward Island Supreme Court Cardigan riding association donor, appointed as a trial judge in 2008.Douglas MacArthur National Research Council (NRC) Charlottetown riding association donor, appointed to the council in 2008.J. Stephens Allan Canadian Tourism Commission Donor to Calgary Centre riding association. Appointed in 2008.Suzanne Duprat Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor in Montreal, appointed to the board in 2008.Pierre Trepanier International Joint Commission Conservative donor, appointed as a Canadian commissioner in 2008.Bruce Faulkner Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal Conservative donor, appointed in 2008.Pierre Patenaude Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Conservative donor, appointed in 2008 for Longueuil.Andre Audet Canadian Museum of Civilization Laurier-Ste. Marie riding association donor, appointed as vice-chairman of the Board of Trustees in 2008.William Glover Employment Insurance Act Board of Referees Donor to the Lethbridge riding association, appointed as chairman for Alberta in 2008.Armando DeLuca Windsor Port Authority Essex riding association donor, appointed to the port board of directors in 2007.Jean Saucier Canada Council for the Arts Laurier-Ste Marie riding association donor, appointed in 2007.Josee Verner Senate Former Conservative MP, appointed to the Senate after losing the 2011 election.Fabian Manning Senate Former Conservative Senator, reappointed after losing the 2011 electionLarry Smith Senate Former Conservative Senator, reappointed after losing the 2011 election despite promising to refuse a reappointment